Every year, more than 300,000 women die from cervical cancer, with nine in 10 of these deaths in the poorest countries.
About 80 per cent of cervical cancer deaths occur in low and middle-income countries.
Poor access to prevention, screening and treatment contribute to 90 per cent of these deaths according to the World Health Organisation.
WHO says cervical cancer mortality rates in developing countries have risen often due to limited access to health services, lack of awareness and absence of screening and treatment programmes.
Worldwide, this disease ranks as the fourth most frequently diagnosed cancer and the fourth leading cause of cancer death in women and yet it is a preventable disease.
Cervical cancer ranks second behind breast cancer in low-income countries.
All women are at risk of cervical cancer and this disease occurs most often in women over the age of 30.
The human papillomavirus is the main cause of cervical cancer, HPV is a common virus that is passed from one person to another during sex.
Most sexually active people will have HPV at some point in their lives, but few women will get cervical cancer.
Other factors that can increase the risk of cervical cancer are intimacy at an early age, multiple sexual partners, sexually transmitted diseases among other factors.
Early cervical cancer shows no symptoms and therefore screening is of utmost importance.
The widespread use of cervical screening programmes has dramatically reduced rates of cervical cancer in the developing world.
A well-proven way to prevent cervical cancer is to have testing (screening) to find pre-cancers before they can turn into invasive cancer and vaccination in pre-teens against the virus that causes cancer.
In Kenya, women should be keen to screen for this type of cancer as delayed diagnosis and lack of awareness are the major factors causing women to die from the disease.
Cervical cancer can be eliminated if people get vaccinated.
The HPV vaccine is safe and prevents cervical cancer. The vaccine is highly effective and it can prevent nine in 10 cases of HPV according to WHO.
January is cervical cancer awareness month.
Get informed, screened and vaccinated.
Encourage young girls in all their diversity to take the vaccine.
The government and other stakeholders should avail affordable or free cervical cancer services especially in marginalised regions including rural areas.
Ensuring access, uptake equal provision of the HPV vaccine to all regions should be a top priority to utmost prevention measures are laid out.
I urge the Ministry of Health to ensure a consistent supply of HPV vaccines, testing and screening centres and sensitisation on the importance of taking the vaccines countrywide.
Reproductive health youth expert
Edited by Kiilu Damaris
