Cervical cancer may not be something you think about. But it is something you should know about.
Like most cancers, the risk of dying from cervical cancer increases when it is not found early, through a Pap test. A Pap test is an exam by a doctor that checks for changes in the cells of a woman’s cervix. Some groups of women have a higher risk of dying from cervical cancer than others.
Women living in rural and suburban counties in northern New England through Appalachia, in the Deep South, along the Texas-Mexico border, and in parts of the central valley of California die more often from cervical cancer than women in other parts of the country.
Many African American women in rural areas tend to die more often from cervical cancer than other groups of women.
Many Alaska Native women die more often from cervical cancer than other groups of women.
Cervical cancer deaths are higher among Hispanic/Latina women living on the Texas-Mexico border, and among white women in Appalachia, rural New York State, and northern New England.
African American women die from cervical cancer twice as much as white women (per every 100,000 people).
