PHILADELPHIA, Pa. -- Health experts say cervical cancer rates in some parts of Philadelphia are almost as high as they are in some third world nations.

Even though a regular pap smear can find a problem before it turns into cancer, the condition, known as cervical dysplasia, continues to affect 500,000 American women a year.

Right now the most common treatment is to remove part of the cervix. And in relatively young women that may cause problems with pregnancy in the future.

Now doctors at Temple University Hospital are offering local women the opportunity to get a vaccine to avoid surgery and its complications.

If you're a young woman between the ages of 18 and 25 with moderate to severe dysplasia, and you want to try to preserve your cervix so you can still carry a child, you can now take part in a clinical trial of a vaccine.

Dr. Enrique Hernandez, the chairman of obstetrics and gynecology at the hospital, said preliminary data shows the vaccine is effective in 70 percent of cases.

The vaccine is not the new HPV vaccine that protects women from the causes of cervical cancer. This is a vaccine for women that have already been infected.

For more information on the clinical trial, contact Nurse Mimi at 215-707-3015 between the hours of 9 a.m and 4 p.m.