Cancer Research: anyone with a cervix

[Aloneinacrowd70]

Not sure how to link to Twitter, but Cancer Research UK have a pinned tweet which says:

'Cervical screening (or the smear test) is relevant for everyone aged 25-64 with a cervix. Watch our animation to find out what to expect when you go for screening #CervicalScreeningAwarenessWeek'

Everyone with a cervix? I think in their attempt to be inclusive, they are potentially excluding women who may not know about their own biology. Plus, they still refer to men with regard to prostate cancer:

www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/prostate-cancer

It's only women who are unable to be named, apparently.

Link to the CRUK tweet here:

twitter.com/CR_UK/status/1006857678767951872

Connected thread here:
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3265653-At-your-cervix

Plus, they still refer to men with regard to prostate cancer

Why am I not surprised.

How exclusionary to the learning disabled who make up quite a big population and are very vulnerable, to be non exclusionary to a tiny group.

That's a interesting point, Imagine. How does material like this get presented in formats like Easy Read? Do they just skip to 'women' for that?

A poster on the thread linked above highlighted a study demonstrating that a significant number of men surveyed by a Prostate Cancer Charity did not know they have a prostate. I think it reasonable to assume the same may be true for some women with regards their cervix.

How can a brain damaged person or someone with a condition like Dementia understand that nonsense they have just tweeted?

Not everyone will remember O level/GCSE anatomy and physiology from Biology.

Maybe they’re just trying to spike the guns of the self styled women who would demand a smear test as of right, ignoring the fact that as they have all male plumbing they don’t need any such thing?
We can’t pretend that these time wasting, resource wasting gobshites aren’t out there.

In Ireland there are some groups currently lobbying with regards the use of 'woman' in new legislation & policies giving abortion rights following the referendum:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/3260503-Trans-Voices-For-Appeal-Complain-About-Together-For-Yes-Campaign

Women might have their cervix removed as part of a total hysterectomy. It is correct to say that only those with a cervix need screening. So it could be construed as a reminder to those who had subtotal hysterectomies that screening is still recommended.

There is no screening programme for the prostate - you have to be symptomatic for it to be checked. If there were one, then parallel language would be appropriate. Though if course the prostate is only removed because of cancer, so those with no prostate would already be 'in' the cancer treatment pathway.

Is this a call for men to be treated the same way as women, and there to be a national screening programme? Given that the characteristics of the disease are not similar, it's not where I would put resources. But if it's important that there be parity then I suppose there is a case to be made.

Moggy - I believe pretty much all trans women have prostates even after genital surgery. So calling it a men's issue should then also be called trans-exclusionary, no?

Not everyone will remember O level/GCSE anatomy and physiology from Biology.

This.

Adult human females (formerly known as women) is accurate to capture the widest target audience. Calling them cervix-havers is irresponsible... How would a person even check whether they have a cervix if they're confused!?

Please can we keep the clinical terms male and females which have clear definitions?

I took that to mean that if you have had a hysterectomy or otherwise have had your cervix removed, you need to go.
They have not included the word ‘women’ just because it’s so flipping obvious it doesn’t need to be said. But how awful is it that we now live in a time when we can feel like we are being excluded and silenced so easily- how have we arrived at this

Sorry - I missed the word ‘don’t’ in my first sentence there!

I'm very confused by all this! (Not helpful or insightful at all, but I've read three threads today and am seriously worried that I'm completely clueless about how I feel about it all) How can specifying having a cervix be exclusionary? Am I being really dim? Don't have a cervix? Don't need a smear! Are there REALLY people who think it's their right to be offered a smear if they don't have a cervix??? Reminds of that bit from the Life of Brian....(that I can't quite remember..)

Women who have had a total hysterectomy for gyny cancer (including removal of the cervix) are usually called for smear tests. They are only removed from the list after confirmation from their consultant that a vault smear is not neccessary.

MedicinalGin -
Understood. However, I think if you're advertising a screening programme, the point is to include the whole target audience, clearly. There is a lot of ignorance of biology out there, as this Vice article alludes to:
www.vice.com/en_us/article/xdmyjn/almost-half-of-british-women-cant-correctly-locate-the-vagina-or-cervix

The article below raised my awareness of the potentially serious implications of conflicting rights and women's health:

(extract)
The NHS has apologised to a woman who was left “embarrassed and distressed” after a nurse with stubble and a deep voice was going to carry out her cervical smear test at hospital. The woman requested a female NHS nurse to perform the intimate procedure but was dismayed when a staff member with “an obviously male appearance” greeted her. When the patient pointed out the mistake, the nurse replied: “My gender is not male. I’m a transsexual.”

“[It was] weird where somebody says to you: ‘My gender is not male’ and you think: ‘Well, what does that even mean? You are clearly a man’.” Female patient The woman declined to go ahead with the examination – given to women aged 25 to 49 every three years and every five years for women aged 50 to 64 – and complained about her treatment.

She stressed her complaint was not about the nurse’s appearance or gender status. It is understood the nurse self-identified as a woman but had not been employed on that basis. He saw the patient only because of a clerical error.

“[It was] weird where somebody says to you: ‘My gender is not male’ and you think: ‘Well, what does that even mean? You are clearly a man’, the woman told the Sunday Times. “[The nurse] had an obviously male appearance . . . close-cropped hair, a male facial appearance and voice, large number of tattoos and facial stubble.”

The patient said it was “bad enough for a fortysomething mother”, but the effect of such an incident on her 17-year-old daughter would have been much worse." (continues)

inews.co.uk/news/health/nhs-woman-transgender-nurse-smear-test/

It should read 'women with a cervix'. That should cover it.

noeffingidea
please see my post above re women who despite having had their cerix removed need confirmation from their oncology consultatnt that a vault smear is not needed before being removed from the list.

Policy wording is being written by people without expert and detailed knowledge.

This from a sector which insists on using the word 'tummy' to talk about your abdomen.

Oh dear God. We had covered periods but I hadn’t properly considered smear tests.

Please make this genuinely be about those who have had their cervix removed. Mind you, its only a matter of time before the TAs demand smear tests too though. Can you imagine..’there’s more to a smear test than cell changes’.

Give. Me. Strength.

I'm with kettle! "I don't have a cervix but I'm a woman and it's my right to have a smear test because women get them." Christ! I don't know anyone who looks forward to it. I bet blokes don't look forward to having prostate exams either... (Possibly being narrow minded here but it's really not making any sense to me. I think I need some training/education...!

Agree with the big point here that many women do not know about cervixes- what it is, where it is, whether they have one.

Have they considered any kind of assessment on how many of their target group will understand this is aimed at them?

I find this really worrying.

To be honest trans women will have more of a chance of understanding that medical things for women include them, and if they have had surgery then that will all have been explained, what is being removed, what it means etc.

Meanwhile loads of women miss screening because they have zero idea the campaign is trying (failing) to talk to them.