Early detection of cervical abnormalities is critical for saving lives - Occupational Health Management Consultant

Ms. Jennifer Nelson, a Preventive and Occupational Health Management Consultant on Monday emphasized that early detection of cervical abnormalities through screening is a critical component of cervical cancer elimination and called for up-scaled efforts to combat it.

Ms. Nelson, who is also the CEO of preventive health NGO Lifeline Haven Company Limited, expressed concern about current statistics, which indicate that every year, 2,797 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 1,699 die from the disease.

She noted surveys conducted in Ghana indicate that cervical cancer screening rates in urban and rural areas are extremely low (3.2 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively).

Ms. Nelson supported her argument with the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Cervical Cancer Elimination Strategy report, which indicates that women be screened twice, ideally at ages 35 and 45, with a high-performance test.

Speaking at a Cervical Cancer Awareness campaign organized by the Communication for Development and Advocacy Consult Limited (CDA Consult Ltd), Ms. Nelson stressed that as “we approach the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal threshold for cervical cancer eradication, we need to scale up our efforts through a comprehensive national action involving both state and non-state actors."

Ms. Nelson stressed that infection by high-risk types of human papillomavirus (HPV), the virus that causes over 99 percent of cervical cancers, can be prevented by safe and effective vaccines.

She explained that as part of the WHO recommendation, girls between 9 and 14 years of age receive two doses of the HPV vaccine as a form of prevention, stressing that “we need collective efforts to deal with cervical cancer.

Mr. Francis Ameyibor, Executive Director of the CDA Consult Limited, recounted that Member States of the WHO approved an ambitious strategy in November 2020 to accelerate the global elimination of cervical cancer through the scale-up of effective interventions.

According to WHO data, US$ 94.7 million was invested in HPV vaccination programmes, and US$ 66.6 million was invested in cervical cancer screening and treatment programmes in 2021, both representing large increases over 2020.

Despite these increases, at the current pace, only around $1.6 billion, or 15 percent of the $10.5 billion necessary to achieve 2030 targets for cervical cancer elimination in low- and lower-middle-income countries, will be mobilised.

Mr. Ameyibor said CDA Consult has rolled out a relentless advocacy campaign to combat cervical cancer in the country and also draw global attention to the slow pace of achieving the 2030 target and the need for scaling up the process.

The CDA Consult Executive Director explained that the Change Paradigm Advocacy campaign is anchored on free HPV vaccination advocacy and scaling up prevention, detection, and treatment to eliminate cervical cancer in Ghana.

The CDA Consult, which is a development communication advocacy non-governmental organisation, is rallying stakeholders toward a relentless national advocacy campaign to battle cervical cancer.

The CDA Consult aims to bring together health professionals, human rights advocates, gender activists, religion adherents, and communication practitioners to embark on a new model of advocacy.