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The Executive Director of Vital Voices for Africa (VVA), Mr. Caleb Ayong, has called on African governments and development partners to prioritize cervical cancer prevention and control. Speaking on 17 July 2024 during the #HerReasonForBeing virtual space hosted by Being Africa, Ayong highlighted the significant opportunity to eliminate cervical cancer if proactive measures are taken.
Ayong emphasized that a major deterrent for women seeking cervical cancer screening is the embarrassment of exposing their private parts to medical practitioners, often men. Medical experts warn that early stages of cervical cancer are asymptomatic, making regular screening crucial for early detection and treatment.
In August 2020, the World Health Assembly adopted the Global Strategy for Cervical Cancer Elimination, aiming to achieve and maintain an incidence rate of below 4 per 100,000 women by 2030. The World Health Organization (WHO) outlined three key pillars and targets to achieve this goal:
- Vaccination: 90% of girls fully vaccinated with the HPV vaccine by age 15.
- Screening: 70% of women screened using a high-performance test by age 35 and again by age 45.
- Treatment: 90% of women with pre-cancer treated and 90% of women with invasive cancer managed.
Ayong stated that prioritizing HPV vaccination and cervical cancer screening can help meet the WHO targets and eliminate the disease in Africa. He advocated for investment in less intrusive and more affordable screening methods to encourage more women to undergo screening. Currently, the two approved screening methods for cervical cancer are the commonly used pap smear and the more expensive but self-applied HPV DNA test.
“It is possible to eliminate cervical cancer, but it is not a priority for African governments and perhaps, development partners,” Ayong said. “If we invest in making cervical cancer screening more user-friendly and less intrusive, it could help get many more women screened across the continent. Once we can get more women screened, we will be able to identify cervical cancer at an early stage, and the automatic result is that we will have fewer cases where the disease reaches an advanced, fatal stage.”
Ayong drew parallels to the Roll Back Malaria initiative, which has seen massive investment in malaria prevention and control, including the distribution of mosquito bed nets to households. He urged similar investments for cervical cancer eradication in Africa, noting that targeting women of a certain age group for vaccination and screening can make a significant impact.
The WHO reports that cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women globally, with around 660,000 new cases and 350,000 deaths in 2022. The highest rates of cervical cancer incidence and mortality are in low- and middle-income countries. This can change with investments in HPV vaccination, efficient HPV DNA testing, and effective screening and vaccination strategies.
“Africa can and will eradicate cervical cancer if governments and development partners make it a priority,” Ayong concluded.
