St. Joseph’s Health Care London is organizing a one-day-only Pop-Up Pap test for anyone with a cervix on January 29. No appointments are needed, making it convenient for individuals aged 25 and older to visit the Colposcopy Clinic at St. Joseph’s London for the screening.
Dr. Robert Di Cecco, Medical Director of the Colposcopy Clinic of St. Joseph’s Health Care London
Dr. Robert Di Cecco, Medical Director of the Colposcopy Clinic, explains, “The clinic is important because the screening rates for cervical cancer are quite low in the province and one of the challenges that individuals have is accessing a family doctor or finding the time to go and see their family doctor.”
“So, we thought that this would be an opportunity to open up the clinic for anybody who has a cervix and struggles to simply come in and get their tap test done.”
According to Dr. Di Cecco, cervical cancer is one of the top three or four causes of death worldwide in those with a cervix.
“The screening program provides an opportunity to identify women that may have a risk of developing a cancer of the cervix which allows us to intervene and modify or eliminate that risk without advancing into an actual cancer,” says Dr. Di Cecco.
“The treatment aspect of cancer could be quite intensive and it has significant effects on a person’s body and other quality of life. So this provides an opportunity to be able to intervene before it actually develops and goes down that more aggressive road,”
Twenty years ago Tiffany Lucas found out that she had tested positive for human papillomavirus (HPV), the primary cause of cervical cancer during a routine physical and pap test. The virus cleared on its own although in 2018, Tiffany’s routine pap test results showed abnormal cells for the third time and she returned to Dr. Di Cecco.
Tiffany Lucas with her two daughters
“I’m just basically telling my stories to help and prevent cervical cancer in other women so that in the future. If someone does not have a pap test or doesn’t have access to a pap test, maybe my story can encourage them to go and have a pap test,” says Tiffany.
Tiffany was assessed and underwent a minor procedure, which found she had very early cancer of the cervix. Left untreated it would have progressed to a more advanced invasive cancer of the cervix requiring much more aggressive treatment.
“The majority of people that develop cancer usually are those who haven’t been screened for a long period of time or have other risk factors and haven’t gone through the screenings. I hope we can get more people screened so that we can have an impact on the number of cases of cervical cancer,” says Dr. Di Cecco.
St. Joseph’s has also published details of the Clinic and who should get the test done on their website. The information can be accessed by clicking here.
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