Cervical cancer prevention starts with screening and vaccination

January is National Cervical Health Awareness Month, and the Erie County Department of Health is reminding women that screening and vaccination are important tools to detect and prevent cervical cancer. All women are at risk of developing cervical cancer, though it occurs most often in women over 30 years of age. Women who smoke are about twice as likely to develop cervical cancer compared to non-smokers. Other risk factors include having HIV or another condition that makes it hard to fight off health problems, using birth control pills for a long time, or having given birth to three or more children. The Erie County Department of Health has a world of good information on their web site. Erie County Health Commissioner, Dr. Gale Burstein joined us with more information. https://www.erie.gov/cancerservices