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How important is cervical cancer?
Worldwide, cervical cancer is the second-most common cancer among women. In many developing economies, this disease is the most common cancer affecting women.
Who gets cervical cancer?
Women of any age can develop cervical cancer. However, it frequently strikes - and sometimes kills - women when they are relatively young, in their mid-to-late 40s.
What causes cervical cancer?
Cervical cancer is caused by specific types of a very common virus - the human papillomavirus, or HPV. Most people will get HPV at some point during their lives.
Women who have HPV but do not have cervical cancer usually do not have symptoms.
Do all women with HPV get cervical cancer?
No. For most women, HPV infections are temporary and harmless. But some women will develop a persistent HPV infection; these women are at greatest risk of developing cervical cancer.
Can cervical cancer be prevented?
Yes! Pap tests have successfully reduced cervical cancer rates in countries with well-established screening programs; however, women still suffer and die from cervical cancer.
What is HPV testing?
HPV testing, which looks for HPV, identifies women at risk for cervical cancer. HPV testing enables countries to find more cases of cervical cancer, save more lives and better target healthcare resources to those women who need them.
What is HPV vaccination?
HPV vaccination protects girls and young women from infection with the two types of HPV that cause 70% of all cervical cancers. Three doses are required over a 6-month period in order for the vaccination to be fully effective.
Why do we need both screening and vaccination?
HPV vaccination does not protect women who have already been infected with HPV. It also is unlikely to provide adequate protection from cervical cancer caused by high-risk HPV types not contained in the vaccines. Complacency toward screening could result in more cases of cervical cancer and greater preventative costs.
What is the global community doing to eliminate cervical cancer?
A worldwide movement is underway to incorporate HPV-based technologies into effective cervical cancer prevention programs to save lives, reduce suffering, and conserve healthcare dollars. By working together, governments, industry, foundations, and global leaders can determine the best application for HPV technologies in their respective countries and make HPV testing and HPV vaccination available, affordable, and accessible to all women.
Developing Economies
New HPV tests that are fast, inexpensive, durable, and accurate can greatly improve early detection of cervical disease in communities with limited resources. Ongoing efforts to produce an inexpensive, single dose vaccine that is accessible to everyone also are underway. When these technologies are combined with programs offering immediate treatment, thousands of girls and women could potentially be saved from cervical cancer every year.
Industrialized Economies
In industrialized economies, integrating HPV testing into existing screening programs and adding HPV vaccination will improve prevention efforts while providing a cost-effective solution to preventing cervical cancer.
What can women do in their countries?
By working together, women around the world can end cervical cancer. There are several things we can do:
- We can educate each other about HPV and its link to cervical cancer, and prevention of this disease through screening and vaccination.
- We can encourage governments to make affordable, accessible HPV technologies available to all girls and women.
- We can inform the media so they can spread the word that cervical cancer can be eliminated.
Eliminating cervical cancer can be our most significant legacy in improving global women's health in this century.
Download the Frequently Asked Questions about Cervical Cancer as a PDF
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