Global Impact of Cervical Cancer
The United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon released a message in support of World Cancer Day. One specific portion of his message really resonated with me, and helped guide today's blog post:
Where a person lives should not determine if they develop a cancer or die from it. We must work together to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health issue and to reduce the burden that millions face from all cancers.
Today, February 4th, 2016 is World Cancer Day. The 2016 #WCD theme is the following: We can. I can.
According to the #WCD website, World Cancer Day is a chance to reflect on what you can do, make a pledge, and take action. As a part of the initiative, #WeCanICan I wanted to do my part and explore the global burden of cervical cancer.
I started out my research related to the global impact of cervical cancer by visiting the World Health Organization's website for some fast facts.
I found that cervical cancer is one of the world's deadliest cancers for women! It is responsible for more the 270,000 deaths annually world wide! Of those deaths, approximately 85% occur in developing countries. You know what else? Cervical cancer is also one of the most easily preventable women's cancers!
In December 2014, the WHO published a new guidance for the prevention and control of cervical cancer. This publication (C4GEP) gives a broad vision of what a comprehensive approach to cervical cancer might look like. It specifically outlines the strategies for comprehensive cervical cancer prevention and control. It also highlights the need for collaboration across programs, organizations, and partnerships. This guide includes developments in technologies and strategies which can address the gaps between the needs for cervical cancer prevention and control.
Through access and utilization of known screening processes and vaccination we could prevent almost all cases of cervical cancer in our lifetime! Think about how powerful that message is. We could eradicate cervical cancer, world wide! However, there are many barriers which exist to eradicating cervical cancer world wide. I would like to take a look at this in two categories. First, I would like take a look at the barriers which exist in developing countries, which make up 85% of the annual deaths due to cervical cancer. Secondly, I would like to take a look at the barriers which exist in the developed countries, which make up 15% of the annual deaths due to cervical cancer.
According to the #WCD website, World Cancer Day is a chance to reflect on what you can do, make a pledge, and take action. As a part of the initiative, #WeCanICan I wanted to do my part and explore the global burden of cervical cancer.
I started out my research related to the global impact of cervical cancer by visiting the World Health Organization's website for some fast facts.
I found that cervical cancer is one of the world's deadliest cancers for women! It is responsible for more the 270,000 deaths annually world wide! Of those deaths, approximately 85% occur in developing countries. You know what else? Cervical cancer is also one of the most easily preventable women's cancers!
In December 2014, the WHO published a new guidance for the prevention and control of cervical cancer. This publication (C4GEP) gives a broad vision of what a comprehensive approach to cervical cancer might look like. It specifically outlines the strategies for comprehensive cervical cancer prevention and control. It also highlights the need for collaboration across programs, organizations, and partnerships. This guide includes developments in technologies and strategies which can address the gaps between the needs for cervical cancer prevention and control.
Through access and utilization of known screening processes and vaccination we could prevent almost all cases of cervical cancer in our lifetime! Think about how powerful that message is. We could eradicate cervical cancer, world wide! However, there are many barriers which exist to eradicating cervical cancer world wide. I would like to take a look at this in two categories. First, I would like take a look at the barriers which exist in developing countries, which make up 85% of the annual deaths due to cervical cancer. Secondly, I would like to take a look at the barriers which exist in the developed countries, which make up 15% of the annual deaths due to cervical cancer.
Developing Countries
I would like to start out by noting, I am discussing the developing word as low to middle income countries. According to the WHO, of the 270,000 cervical cancer related deaths annually world wide, 85% of the deaths occur in the developing world. The state of healthcare in these countries varies widely. However, it is all subpar to any of the healthcare systems in the developed countries, specifically the United States. Healthcare in the middle income countries is more developed than the healthcare in the low income countries. In many instances, there is zero healthcare available in the low income countries. According to the WHO, globally, in 2012, there were nearly a billion women between 30 and 49 years old, most of whom have never been screened even once in their life. Take that in for a moment, these women have never been screened. It is no wonder women are dying at such high rates!
There are three major barriers to effective healthcare related to cervical cancer in developing countries -
There are three major barriers to effective healthcare related to cervical cancer in developing countries -
- Lack of money - for many communities in developing countries the lack of financial resources is the primary barrier to healthcare. Global health organizations can help to minimize healthcare costs, however the lack of financial stability remains a major barrier to healthcare.
- Lack of education - in the developing countries there is much poverty and a lack of basic education. People who live in poverty typically aren't provided education about when, why, and where to even access basic healthcare. Another area of concern is the lack of basic public health education. This lack of education can lead to a negative stigma and increased spread of disease.
- Lack of resources - in the United States there are experts all over the country who are trained doctors able to perform annual well woman exams, there are also ample experts able to analyze data collected from Pap tests and provide accurate results for treatment. This is simply not the case in the developing world. There are not enough trained individuals to perform the needed exams and read the analyze the needed information. There are, obviously, also not enough trained professionals able to treat any precancerous lesions which could be found during regular exams. The lack of resources is a major barrier to having adequate healthcare in these developing countries.
Developed Countries
Developed countries account for approximately 15% of the cervical cancer related deaths annually world wide. Through the use of widely available screening and prevention methods available to individuals, this number should be drastically lower. Although it is only 15% of the overall amount of individuals who die of cervical cancer related death annually that is still 40,500 women who are dying of a preventable cancer! Within the United States, approximately 4,100 women die annually of cervical cancer. It is unbelievable! Cervical cancer could be almost completely eradicated through the use of annual well woman exams, HPV vaccination, Pap tests, HPV tests, and treatment of cervical abnormalities and precancerous lesions caught early due to adequate screening. Women should annually see a healthcare provider. Some of the same barriers which exist in other countries can be prevalent in poverty ridden areas of developed countries. Women who live in poverty sometimes do not receive education about the when, why, and where to receive access to annual healthcare. Women may also not be informed as to where affordable healthcare is accessible. Another barrier is information related to the HPV vaccine and preventative care may not be relayed to all males and females.
How Can We Make a Change?
Cervivor is on a mission to eradicate cervical cancer! Cervivor is an organization built around the principles of being informed, empowered, and alive. Cervivor is a community, a learning tool, an advocacy resource, and an online retreat for healing, connecting and thriving. We at Cervivor want women dealing with HPV or cervical cancer to know they are not alone. We are a circle of friends, a circle of support and a circle of hope. Our network of survivors and their friends are all part of this circle – offering support for those who have received a diagnosis, education to those who want to learn how to protect themselves from cervical cancer, and advocacy to everyone who wants to help us stamp out this disease once and for all. Visit Cervivor to learn how you can get involved.
Another organization which is on a mission has a goal to minimize the barriers and reduce the global burden of cervical cancer. The Global Coalition against Cervical Cancer (GC3) provides expert analysis with best fit sustainable solutions to reduce the global burden of cervical cancer
The World Cancer Day initiative also has several suggestions for how you can get involved to help minimize the impact of cancer. All of these principles can be applied to reducing the global impact of cervical cancer.
Infographic provided by GC3 shows the yearly global cervical cancer burden of the US compared to India and Africa. As you can see from this graphic the rate of disease incidence and fatalities increases as the income and development level decreases.
Visual Story
I had the honor of meeting Clara Griffin of GC3 in Charleston at Cervivor School South. She helped shed some light on what conditions are like in low and middle income developing countries. I felt like seeing is believing in this case and I reached out to see if she could share some photographs with me which really show what women's healthcare is like in these other countries. She first told me that these pictures are all based in middle income countries. Can you guess why? The answer, in my opinion, is devastating. The low income countries do not have facilities so there is nothing to have a picture of! Imagine that. You are having unusual symptoms, things don't seem right, and there isn't even a place to go.
Looking at these pictures, think about your doctors offices, hospitals, and medical facilities. Can you imagine walking into any of these facilities pictured below and receiving adequate healthcare? When Clara sent me these pictures she noted that there is an open box of pathology (pap smears) slides with a bag of food trash next to it; these are actual results waiting to be analyzed! Boxes of papers that are, in fact, the filing system for the lab; imagine if that is how your files were stored. There are jars of swabs not only open to the air but the collection end is up where it can not only collect other material but someone might grab or touch it; how accurate do you think those test results will be? When I looked at these pictures I noticed many things. There is mold on the walls in a medical facility and on the walls of a diagnostic room. These are real pictures, of what the healthcare conditions are like globally right now.
Looking at these pictures, think about your doctors offices, hospitals, and medical facilities. Can you imagine walking into any of these facilities pictured below and receiving adequate healthcare? When Clara sent me these pictures she noted that there is an open box of pathology (pap smears) slides with a bag of food trash next to it; these are actual results waiting to be analyzed! Boxes of papers that are, in fact, the filing system for the lab; imagine if that is how your files were stored. There are jars of swabs not only open to the air but the collection end is up where it can not only collect other material but someone might grab or touch it; how accurate do you think those test results will be? When I looked at these pictures I noticed many things. There is mold on the walls in a medical facility and on the walls of a diagnostic room. These are real pictures, of what the healthcare conditions are like globally right now.
What Can I Do, Personally?
I encourage you to fully embrace the purpose of #WCD, and take a chance to reflect on what you can do, make a pledge, and take action. Specific examples of what you can do include: make healthy lifestyle choices, understand that early detection saves lives, ask for support, support others, take control of your cancer journey, love and be loved, be yourself, return to work, share your story, and/or speak out. Please click on #WCD for examples of each of these items and guidance for how it can apply to you.
Want to be involved in a larger way? There are many ideas on the #WCD page to help you get involved on a grander scale!
Want to be involved in a larger way? There are many ideas on the #WCD page to help you get involved on a grander scale!
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