Associate Professor from Memorial Şişli Hospital, Department of Gynecological Oncology. Dr. Gökhan Demirayak warned that women should not wait any longer for the regular gynecological check-ups that were interrupted during the summer period and gave information about the things to be considered.
Assoc. Dr. Gökhan Demirayak said the following about disrupted gynecological controls:
“Bleeding during intercourse, spotting, or excessive foul-smelling discharge can be signs of cervical cancer. Again, excessive menstrual bleeding, prolongation of its duration, and intermittent bleeding may be signs of endometrial cancer. Abdominal bloating, indigestion, constipation, frequent urination may indicate ovarian cancer. In these cases, it is of great importance to have a gynecological examination without waiting. It can allow the disease to be caught at an early stage and to be treated definitively with surgery. Apart from this, other complaints such as urinary incontinence, discharge, groin pain reduce the quality of life of women considerably. These complaints can be diagnosed and treated with a short examination.
Many gynecological surgeries such as myoma, urinary incontinence, prolapse, and cyst surgeries can be operated with robotic or laparoscopic methods, which we now call minimally invasive surgery. In these surgeries, there is less bleeding with small incisions, less scarring and pain in the postoperative period, and faster return to daily activities. Patients are discharged on the 1st or 2nd day after surgery and can return to their daily life.
Patients who will have their examinations related to women's health should avoid sexual intercourse, do not douche or use vaginal products 24 hours before, as this may invalidate the test results. In the examinations, information should be given about the date of the last menstrual period, the age at which menstruation started, the history of pregnancy, miscarriage or abortion. In addition, any pain or vaginal discharge should be reported to the doctor.
Before the examination, the patient may need to give a urine and blood sample. At this time, the patient's height and weight are measured. Afterwards, the patient's history is taken, and then the ultrasound examination phase is started. After this stage, the examinations that should be done routinely are listed as follows:
Visual inspection: In this examination, first of all, it is checked whether there are warts, masses and color changes in the external genital organ, which we call the vulva. Then, with special instruments called speculum, it is checked whether there are pathologies such as mass and wart in the vagina. Finally, the cervix is evaluated. It is evaluated whether there is a mass, erosion or other pathology.
HPV DNA and Pap Smear test: With swap, 2 samples are taken from the cervix and sent to microbiology and pathology. HPV screening is done with the first sample. As is known, HPV is one of the causes of cervical cancer. In Pap smear, the presence of atypical cells showing pre-cancerous lesions in the cervix or vagina is sought. If HPV DNA and Pap smear test results are negative, screening should be done every 5 years.
Bimanual examination: It is evaluated whether there is a mass and adhesion in the uterus and in the area where the ovaries are located. This examination is very important in understanding the ease or difficulty of the operation, especially in patients who will undergo surgery.
Ultrasound: Vaginal ultrasound is performed for clearer visualization of the internal genital organs. Thanks to this ultrasound, more clear information can be obtained about the uterus, tubes and ovaries. If virginity is in question, this examination is done in the form of abdominal ultrasound. Ultrasound examinations are very valuable and often life-saving.
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