January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month.
Are you up to date on your screening test?
Cervical screening is for people who are at risk of getting cervical cancer, but who have no symptoms and generally feel fine. The cervix is a body part that connects the uterus (womb) to the vagina (genital opening). Cervical cancer is cancer in the cervix and it is almost always caused by human papillomavirus (HPV).
The Ontario Cervical Screening Program recommends that most eligible people get screened every 5 years.
Get screened if you:
• are at least 25 years old
• are a woman, Two-Spirit person, transmasculine person or nonbinary person with a cervix
• have ever had sexual contact with another person
• do not have symptoms, like different bleeding or discharge (clear or yellow fluid) from the vagina, and
• are due for cervical screening
Not sure if you’re overdue for screening? Contact your primary care provider, or call 8-1-1.
Learn more about cervical cancer screening in this short, animated video by Dr. Erin Peltier, a First Nations family doctor: https://youtu.be/dArSsd4iINM?si=1T6cGErg6Rqcw85o
Your health matters — early screening saves lives.
