…this and more to be addressed in MoH’s ‘cancer control’ plan

By Rehana Ahamad
EVEN though cervical cancer continues to be one of the leading causes of death among Guyanese women, not many parents seem to be aggressive in ensuring that their young daughters are vaccinated to prevent the sexually transmitted, Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), which often leads to cancers of the cervix.
In an interview with the Sunday Chronicle, Minister of Health Dr. Frank Anthony confirmed that the current uptake rate of the HPV vaccine is very low.
“It is about 30 per cent for the first dose, and 13 per cent for the second dose, so obviously we have to increase the uptake of the vaccine,” Dr. Anthony said, reiterating the importance of vaccination for girls between the ages of nine to 14.

In wrapping up Cervical Cancer Awareness Month (January) 2021, Dr. Anthony has committed to the nation’s fight against all forms of cancers, with specific emphasis being placed on those cancers of the breast, cervix and prostate.

“We want to develop a comprehensive plan for cancer control; that is something that the ministry is working on right now,” the minister indicated.
With cervical cancer being somewhat easier to prevent, Dr. Anthony said a specific programme is currently underway to promote a series of preventative measures to tackle this silent killer of women.

“[As part of] this programme, we want to increase the vaccination rate for HPV. So you’ll see us rolling out, during this year, and the following years, a programme to have a larger uptake of the HPV vaccine, because if girls are immunised, it prevents them from cervical cancer,” the Health Minister posited.
He said that the “next level” of prevention would be to ensure that women and girls have adequate access to health screenings, including pap smears and Visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA).

“We are also going to be pushing for HPV testing for the papilloma virus…that is another level of screening that we will be doing for women between the ages of 35-45. We are looking at how we can increase the [existing] clinics that we have and be able to offer the service across the country, and get more women to come in for such screenings,” Dr. Anthony said.
Additionally, a notable component of the ‘cancer control’ programme would be the advancement of treatment options for those who have not benefited from the previous “prevention levels.”

“We must have the ability to do the types of surgeries when we detect these types of cancers,” Dr. Anthony asserted. He also emphasised the need for improvements in relation to post-detection care and follow-up treatments. “In terms of radiation and chemotherapy and so on,” Dr. Anthony specified.
The minister is optimistic that once vaccination increases, the instances of cervical cancer would see drastic reductions.

“Over the next couple of years, if we have good uptake of the vaccine, we can actually eliminate cervical cancer from Guyana, because these cancers are caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), and with the vaccine we can prevent it,” a hopeful Dr. Anthony related.

Currently, 22 public clinics across Guyana possess the capacity to conduct free VIA screenings and pap smears, “and we are looking to expand that, and we want to get more people to get these screenings,” Minister Anthony added.

Cervical cancer has grown to become quite common among women globally, affecting mostly women between the ages of 30 and 65 years. However, younger women continue to be victims of this silent killer. In a local context, Guyana continues to rank among the most affected countries in the Americas, with an age-standardised incidence rate of 32.7 per 100,000, as at 2018. Cervical cancer is said to be the second most frequently-diagnosed cancer in Guyana, with mostly Indo and Afro-Guyanese being affected.