In an interview with blogger Jeremstar, former reality TV contestant Barbara Opsomer revealed that she has cervical cancer and will soon have surgery. She recalled the importance of being screened to manage the disease as early as possible.
- In France, nearly 3,000 women develop cervical cancer and 1,000 women die from it.
- Three quarters of women are under 65 at the time of diagnosis.
- The best ways to fight against cancer of the cervix are screening by analyzing the cells of the cervix, carrying out the HPV-HR test, during a smear, and vaccination against the papillomavirus.
“I think I made a denial”. 2017 Secret Story 11 contestant Barbara Opsomer told blogger Jeremstar, in an episode of the show baby story broadcast on December 19 on Youtube, that she had cancer of the cervix. “I had a smear ten years ago. A specialist told me that I had to be careful because I was carrying papillomavirus, and that I had to have an irreproachable life. But it was the time when I didn’t care. She told me to come back the following year and in fact I let it drag on for ten years. It completely slipped my mind.”said the thirty-something.
“The next step is the operation”
The former reality TV contestant, who became the mother of a seven-month-old baby boy, recently learned that she suffered from this disease, which develops on the lining of the cervix, after have made a smear. “Actually that was all over the uterus so I have cancer cells all over the place. I’m stage 3 so now the next step is surgery”she revealed.
Despite the difficult ordeal she is going through, the Belgian singer considered herself lucky not to have to undergo an ablation of the uterus. “It would have been hard to have my uterus removed, especially at my age, you never know if I still want a second child, even if at the moment I don’t want one. And then for a woman it’s very hard to have her uterus removed”, explained Barbara Opsomer.
The young mother wanted to talk about her cancer of the uterus in order to encourage young women to be screened regularly. “It’s super important to get tested and have pap smears every year. That’s what I didn’t do,” she regretted.
How to diagnose cervical cancer?
Cervical cancer is mainly caused by persistent infection with a human papillomavirus (HPV) transmitted during sexual intercourse. This pathology can be detected by the occurrence of symptoms (pain during sexual intercourse, white discharge, bleeding outside periods of menstruation, etc.) or during a screening examination.
Screening, offered to all women aged 25 to 65, detects the presence of the virus or cell abnormalities in the cervix. This allows “therefore to treat them before they develop into cancer or to diagnose cancers at an early stage and thus improve the chances of recovery”says Health Insurance.
For women between 25 and 29 years old, the screening test is carried out by cytological examination or examination of the cells taken during the smear. In this case, the goal is to analyze the cells of the cervix. The first two tests are to be carried out one year apart. If the results are normal, a Pap smear should be taken three years later.
An HPV-HR test (detection of HPV viruses at High Risk), which looks for the presence of the HPV virus, is recommended for women aged 30 to 65 because it is more effective for this age group. The latter is to be done during a smear, three years after the last cytological examination, the result of which is normal. A new test must be carried out every 5 years, until the age of 65, when the test result is negative.
Preventing uterine cancer through vaccination
Vaccination against the papillomavirus is also another way to fight against cancer of the cervix. It is recommended for young girls and boys aged 11 to 14. People of both sexes between the ages of 15 and 19 can also benefit from it. This vaccine helps prevent papillomavirus infections. However, it does not replace preventive measures, such as screening.
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