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Risk Factors

It is not clear why one woman develops cervical cancer and another does not. There are, however, certain risk factors that increase the likelihood of developing cervical cancer.

Those risk factors include:

• Human papilloma viruses, or HPV
  HPV infection is the primary risk factor for squamous cell cervical cancer. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted disease and is associated with the development of cervical dysplasia and cervical cancer. Most adults have been infected with HPV at some time in their lives.
   
• Failure to have regular Pap tests
  Cervical cancer is detected more often in women who have not had regular Pap tests. The Pap test helps providers to find and treat precancerous cells in order to prevent cancer.
   
• Weakened immune system
  Women with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, or who take medications that suppress the immune system, have a higher-than-average risk of developing cervical cancer. For these women, providers suggest regular screening for cervical cancer.
   
• Age
  Cancer of the cervix occurs most often in women over the age of 40.
   
• Sexual history
  The risk of developing cervical cancer increases with the number of sexual partners and the risk of those partners. In both cases, the risk of developing cervical cancer is higher because these women have an increased risk of HPV infection.
   
• Smoking cigarettes
  Women with an HPV infection who smoke cigarettes have a higher risk of cervical cancer than women with HPV infection who do not smoke.
   
• Extended use of birth control pills
  Using birth control pills for five or more years may increase the risk of cervical cancer among women with HPV infection.
   
• Having many children
  Studies suggest that giving birth to many children may increase the risk of cervical cancer among women with HPV infection.
   
• Diethylstilbestrol, or DES
  DES may increase the risk of a rare form of cervical cancer and certain other cancers of the reproductive system in women exposed to this drug before birth. Although DES is no longer given to pregnant women, it was prescribed to some pregnant women in the United States between about 1940 and 1971.

If you think that you may be at risk for cervical cancer, share this concern with your provider. Be sure to set up a regular schedule of examinations and Pap tests, and be diligent about following that schedule.