Although relatively rare in developed countries, on a worldwide scale, cervical cancer remains the second most common malignancy to affect women. It is now clear that human papillomavirus infection is implicated in more than 95% of cases of cervical cancer. Early detection of cervical cancer and its precursors, using cytology-based screening, has led to a dramatic reduction in the incidence of, and deaths from, the disease in some developed countries. For early-stage disease, surgery forms the mainstay of treatment. In some cases, radical surgery may be avoided, particularly in early-stage disease, with the possibility of fertility conservation when desired. Minimal access surgery has contributed to this more conservative approach. For more advanced disease, combined chemotherapy and radiotherapy has emerged as being more effective than either treatment alone. Recently, efforts have been made to develop both therapeutic and prophylactic vaccines for use in the prevention and treatment of cervical cancer and precancer.
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