Stage 2 cervical cancer
Stage 2 means the cancer has spread outside the cervix, into the surrounding tissues.
The main treatments are a combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy (chemoradiotherapy), sometimes you may have surgery.
What is stage 2 cervical cancer?
The stage of a cancer tells you how big it is and whether it has spread. It helps your doctor decide which treatment you need.
Doctors use the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) staging system for cervical cancer. There are 4 stages, numbered 1 to 4.
Stage 2 means the cancer has begun to spread outside the neck of the womb (cervix) into the surrounding tissues. But it has not grown into the:
- pelvic wall - the muscles or ligaments that line the area between the hip bones (the pelvis)
- lower part of the vagina
It can be divided into:
- stage 2A
- stage 2B
Stage 2A
In stage 2A the cancer has spread down into the top of the vagina. It can be divided into:
- stage 2A1
- stage 2A2
Stage 2A1 means the cancer is 4 cm or less.
Stage 2A2 means the cancer is more than 4 cm.
Stage 2B
In stage 2B the cancer has spread up into the tissues around the cervix.
Treatment
The stage of your cancer helps your doctor to decide which treatment you need. Treatment also depends on:
- your type of cancer (the type of cells the cancer started in)
- where the cancer is
- other health conditions that you have
Stage 2 cervical cancer might be treated with:
- combined chemotherapy and radiotherapy (chemoradiotherapy) and brachytherapy
- surgery to remove lymph nodes
- very rarely, a radical hysterectomy, followed by chemoradiotherapy
Combined radiotherapy and chemotherapy (chemoradiotherapy)
With this treatment, you have chemotherapy during your course of radiotherapy.
You have daily external radiotherapy for 5 days every week, for around 5 weeks. You also have internal radiotherapy (brachytherapy).
You might also have a boost of radiotherapy if there is a risk of any cancer cells in pelvic lymph nodes.
Surgery
You might have surgery to remove the lymph nodes around your cervix and womb (pelvic lymph nodes). This is because there is a risk the cancer may have spread from the cervix to the nearby lymph nodes.
Some people might have a radical hysterectomy followed by chemoradiotherapy, but this is not a standard treatment. This combination of treatment is generally not advised.
