Cervical dysplasia resolved in less than 2 years
This is an updated version of a previous article describing a case of cervical dysplasia that was successfully treated with naturopathic medicine. I’ve made a few corrections and added the most recent information on this patient’s progress and outcome.
Background:
I have a special interest in women’s health, including naturopathic gynecology, and I see a lot of female patients looking for natural treatments for cervical dysplasia (which is most frequently caused by HPV infection).
In many cases conventional treatment can be invasive, ineffective, or can put patients at risk for future complications. Fortunately, there are wonderful naturopathic treatment options available both instead of or in conjunction with conventional medical treatments.
This case study is a great example of naturopathic treatment for cervical dysplasia as part of my HPV Healing program.
Diagnosis of cervical dysplasia:
There are three evaluations commonly done to assess the severity of cervical dysplasia:
What is the Pap test?
A test in which cells are scraped from the cervix using a plastic broom and evaluated for potential abnormalities, usually using the Bethesda system of classification.
What is a colposcopy?
A visual examination of the cervix during which your doctor looks for signs of abnormalities and assigns a grade to what they observe, usually using cervical intraepithelial neoplasia classification.
What is a biopsy?
A test in which a small sample of tissue is removed from the cervix and examined for potential abnormalities, usually using the Bethesda system of classification. This test is usually done in conjunction with a colposcopy.
Case study: Cervical dysplasia resolved
This patient is a 32 year old female who had her first abnormal Pap at age 26 and had continued to have cervical dysplasia since. Here is the timeline of events leading to naturopathic treatment:
February 2012: High grade dysplasia
The patient was diagnosed with high grade cervical dysplasia via Pap, colposcopy, and biopsy via a specialist MD.
- Pap HSIL
- Colposcopy CIN I
- Biopsy HSIL
April 2012: LEEP procedure
The patient had LEEP done (loop electrosurgical procedure) to remove the abnormal cervical cells and opted to receive HPV vaccine. These cells were biopsied:
- Biopsy HSIL
July 2012: High grade dysplasia continues
The patient was seen for a follow-up with her specialist and the cervical dysplasia continued unchanged from prior to the LEEP:
- Pap HSIL
- Colposcopy CIN I
- Biopsy HSIL
August 2012: Start of naturopathic treatment
Due to the ongoing dysplasia, the patient was recommended to do laser ablation treatment, which was scheduled for November.
At this point the patient began naturopathic treatment with me. She was distressed due to lack of resolution of the cervical dysplasia and concerned about possible progression to cervical cancer and complications from further treatments.
Naturopathic Treatment:
- Nutritional treatment consisting of both diet and supplement recommendations focused on female hormone balance and supporting the immune system in resolving viral infection. Specific nutrients included beta carotene, vitamin C, vitamin E, folic acid, zinc, and green tea extract at therapeutic doses for 3 months and then more moderate doses for 12 months.
- Botanical treatment consisting of a custom compounded herbal tincture focused on immune support and specific anti-viral activity for 3 months.
- Vaginal suppositories focused on resolving viral infection and healing cervical tissue for 12 weeks.
- Biotherapeutic drainage to improve female hormone balance and support healthy elimination and immune function.
- Homeopathic treatment to address patient’s overall state and promote healing.
Results:
It is important to note that this patient followed every treatment recommendation consistently exactly as prescribed, which is key to getting great results.
November 2012: Early improvement
The patient opted to keep her November 2012 appointment for laser treatment. At that time, the colposcopy was normal – the specialist noted that he did not observe lesions but instead likely only scar tissue and therefore opted instead to do a follow-up Pap test which showed a decrease in the severity of the dysplasia from high grade to low grade:
- Pap LSIL
- Colposcopy normal
May 2013: Low grade dysplasia
A follow-up Pap, colposcopy, and biopsy were done with the specialist, all demonstrating that the improvement was maintained:
- Pap LSIL
- Colposcopy CIN I
- Biopsy LSIL
July 2013: Improvement continues
Another Pap, colposcopy, and biopsy were done with the specialist, all demonstrating that the improvement was maintained:
- Pap ASCUS
- Colposcopy normal
- Biopsy normal
At this point we opted to increase the dose of the nutritional supplements once again for 3 months and to repeat the botanical treatment and vaginal suppositories for another 3 months as well.
October 2013: Almost normal
Pap, colposcopy, and biopsy were done with the specialist, all demonstrating continued improvement:
- Pap normal
- Colposcopy cannot rule out CIN I
- Biopsy normal
Another finding was bacterial vaginosis, which we treated via nutritional supplementation and vaginal suppositories.
May 2014: Cervical dysplasia resolved
Pap, colposcopy, and biopsy were done with the specialist, all demonstrating complete resolution of cervical dysplasia:
- Pap normal
- Colposcopy normal
- Biopsy normal
In addition the previously diagnosed bacterial vaginosis was resolved.
Check out my video on Naturopathic treatment of HPV and cervical dysplasia:
All things considered, this patient was appropriately treated and followed by her gynecologist. I see no reason to believe that the addition of naturopathic treatment modalities improved the overall outcome.
Hi Karin,
Thank you for your interest in this case!
It is true that many cases of cervical dysplasia resolve within 2 years.
This patient’s cervical dysplasia had been present from age 26 and persisted following LEEP and the HPV vaccine, so she opted to augment her treatment with a naturopathic approach to help her body heal itself and was very pleased with her outcome.
Many other women are in the same position and can benefit from naturopathic care, which is often supported by their medical doctors.
There are also women who choose to treat cervical dysplasia solely via the naturopathic approach which supports the body’s immune response to resolve the HPV infection.
Why not just prevent HPV infection with one of the two vaccinations available? And… Encouraging women to eschew mainstream medical treatments for cervical dysplasia which have well documented records efficacy is, IMHO, unethical.