“I assumed I would get it as soon as I found a job.”
“They accepted whatever I could afford to give them,” she says.
A few days after her exam, the clinic called with news.
Chad Baker/Jason Reed/Ryan McVay / Getty Images
“They explained they’d found highly abnormal precancerous cells lining my cervix,” DeGlopper says.
“It was terrifying.
They wanted me to make another appointment ASAP.”
Again, Planned Parenthood let her pay what she could.
They recommended treatment to take care of it, and DeGlopper agreed.
“The nurse held my hand as I hyperventilated because I’m a huge weenie,” she says.
“But I knew if I didn’t do this, I could die.”
Regular screening is the only defense against cervical cancer.
And that vital service is now in jeopardy.
The Republicans in Congress are focused ondefunding Planned Parenthoodbecause the organization also provides abortions.
Doctors fear this could cause cervical cancer rates to start climbing.
HPV is themost common STD in the U.S., and it typically causes no symptoms.
Most strains of the virus willclear up on their own, and there’s no damage done.
You might never even know if you have it.
And if a high-risk strain of HPV doesn’t clear up,cervical precancer and cancer could developover time.
And again, it’s quiet.
There are typically nosymptoms for early cervical cancer.
The disease is most common in women younger than age 50, according to theAmerican Cancer Society.
Pap tests can detect precancerous cells in the cervix, literally catching cervical cancer even before it develops.
Not allprecancerous cellsin the cervix will turn into cancer.
And a cervical precancer can turn into cervical cancer in as little asless than a year.
TheHPV DNA testalso can test for high-risk strains of the virus, offering another tool for early detection.
Cervical cancer death rates have dropped by 50 percent in the past 40 years.
This is mostly credited to more women getting regularPap tests.
An ob/gyn can usually perform a Pap test and any necessary precancer treatments right in their office or clinic.
But these things cost money.
It’s clear lack of screening is an issue.
Women who are most vulnerable in our society are the ones we end up seeing develop cervical cancer."
Planned Parenthood can provide the necessary screenings and preventive services to disadvantaged women.
Of Planned Parenthood’s 650 centers,54 percentare located in health professional shortage areas, rural or medically underserved areas.
They also performed 1,621LEEP proceduresand 446cryotherapy procedures, another treatment that can stop cervical precancer in its tracks.
Both are highly effective.
“You hear the word ‘precancerous’ but all you really hear is cancer,” Rodriguez tells SELF.
“Im thinking, ‘Theres no way Im going to be able to hide this from my family.’
The staff at Planned Parenthood, however, helped Rodriguez through the experience without judgment.
And they let her pay what she could for her appointments, including the LEEP procedure.
Her procedure was successful, and Rodriguez still visits a Planned Parenthood ob/gyn today by choice, not necessity.
She was skeptical about the organization on her first visit, but her perception has wholly changed.
Then I would have gone in and been told, This could have been treated earlier.'”
Congress declared last week thatdefunding the organization is a priority.
To be clear, Planned Parenthood doesn’t just receive a lump sum of money from the federal government.
They receive funding mostly through Medicaid reimbursements as well asTitle Xfamily planning grants.
Planned Parenthoodreportsthat 60 percent of their patients are able to access care at their centers thanks to these programs.
And, yes, Planned Parenthood is the nation’s leading abortion provider.
Experts believe that defunding Planned Parenthood could very easily cause an increase in cervical cancer rates.
But according to aGuttmacher Institutereport, other providers couldn’t feasibly serve all of Planned Parenthood’s patients.
“I lived to be successful.
Related:
Watch: Paul Ryan Says GOP Will Defund Planned Parenthood Along With Obamacare
