About 45 South Australians are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year 

About 18 SA women die of the cancer each year 

Cancer of the cervix is the 13th most common cancer in women. 

One in 198 women will develop cervical cancer by the age of 75 

734 Australian women were diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2005. 

221 women died of cervical cancer in Australia in 2005. 

Rates of cervix cancer are higher among women living in low socio-economic areas. 

In the last 20 years mortality rates have dropped by about a third due to effective pap smear screening programs.

Women should have a pap smear every two years 

Women from the age of 12-26 years are eligible for free vaccination against common strains of HPV (Human Papalloma Virus) which cause cervix cancer. They should continue to have regular pap smears if they have ever been sexually active. 

The five year survival rate for women diagnosed with cervix cancer is 71 per cent. 

340 Australian women were diagnosed with cancer of the vulva or vagina in 2005, and 24 South Australian women were diagnosed in 2006