African Vaccination Week – Online Press Conference: By the year 2030, cervical cancer will kill more than 443,000 women yearly worldwide, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa

 

 

The 8th African Vaccination Week will be celebrated from 23 to 29 April 2018.
Cervical cancer remains a leading cause of cancer death among women in Africa. According to the Expert Review of Anti-infective Therapy, by the year 2030, cervical cancer will kill more than 443,000 women yearly worldwide, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa. According to the Human papillomavirus (HPV) Center, 2017, cervical cancer ranks as the most frequent cancer in women in Malawi, Kenya, Zambia and Zimbabwe and the second most frequent cancer in women in South Africa.
The increase in the incidence of cervical cancer in Africa could counteract the progress made by African women in reducing maternal mortality and longevity.
Nevertheless, cervical cancer is a potentially preventable non-communicable disease, and intervention strategies to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health concern should be urgently implemented.
Prof. Greta Dreyer, Head of the Gynaecological Oncology Unit at the University of Pretoria and Dr. Karin Richter, Pathologist (Medical Virology) at Lancet Laboratories (South Africa), will host an online press conference on 26^th, April 2018 at 11am South Africa Time.