EPIDEMIOLOGY OF CERVICAL CANCER - STUDY OF A PRISON POPULATION

The occurrence of cervical cancer among 511 inmates of the Detroit H ouse of Correction was investigated. 30% of the women were prostitutes, 82.6% had trichomonas infestation, 15.5% had syphilis, and 5.3% had gonorrhea. 3.7% of the women were diagnosed as having cancer of the cervix, a rate that was 4 times higher than in a matched control group. Sexual activity of the prisoners, on the average, began 2.8 years earlier than it did for controls. It is concluded that the initiation of coitus at an early age and promiscuity are the primary etiologic factors associated with cervical cancer.