January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month: Take Charge of Your Health!
Cervical cancer is preventable, treatable, and curable—especially when caught early. Yet, thousands are still affected every year. At One Community Health, we’re here to help you take control of your health through vaccinations and regular screenings.
Your Two Best Tools to Prevent Cervical Cancer
Get the HPV Vaccine
The HPV vaccine protects against the virus responsible for most cervical cancers.
Here are the recommendations:
Ages 9–12: Start the vaccine early for the best protection.
Ages 11–26: It’s not too late to catch up!
Ages 27–45: The vaccine might still be helpful—talk with your provider to see if it’s right for you.
Stay on Top of Screenings
Screenings like Pap smear tests and HPV tests can detect cervical cancer early.
What’s recommended:
Ages 21–29: Pap test every 3 years.
Ages 30–65: Pap test every 3 years, high-risk HPV test every 5 years, or both (cotesting) every 5 years.
65 and older: You may not need screening if you’ve had consistently normal results—ask your provider.