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Jade cancer 'diagnosed too late'
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Jade Goody would still be alive if NHS medics had spotted her "quite typical" symptoms of cervical cancer, a private doctor has claimed.
Dr Ann Coxon said if the disease had been discovered three months earlier, Goody would have survived.
She said: "Had she had diagnosis two or three months earlier she would be alive today. It was just too late.
"It's understandable because cervical cancer is rare in people under the age of 30 but nevertheless the symptoms were quite typical of cervical cancer and the diagnosis was missed.
"Had she had a diagnosis at an earlier stage, her life would have been spared."
Goody's public battle with the disease led to an increase in the number of women having smear tests, which rose by 12% last year.
But charity Jo's Trust said the number is now falling again.
Director Robert Music said: "As a result of Jade being so public and brave about her diagnosis, we saw a huge increase in women being screened last year and, for the first time in years, screening attendance went up.
"However, speaking to experts involved in cervical screening, it looks as if these numbers are coming down dramatically, perhaps almost to levels before Jade was diagnosed. On top of this, the numbers of girls having the HPV vaccination, which protects against 70% of all cervical cancers, are also down compared to this time last year, which is worrying.
"We need to remind women that cervical cancer is a largely preventable disease and one where they can take proactive steps to reducing their risk. Jade was just 27 when she tragically died and we don't want to see more children losing their mothers and parents losing their daughters."
Reader views (1)
How cruel - to make that sort of information available to upset her children. I hope the doctor is satisfied with the publicity she has obtained.
- Linzi, Largo, US, 21/03/2010 16:55
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