Cervical cancer risk is six times higher for women with HIV/AIDS

According to the NGO Society for Family Health (SFH), women who have HIV and AIDS are six times more likely to get cervical cancer.

Dr. David Oyedeji, Deputy Chief of Party for Key Birthrate Community HIV Care Services for Action Response (KP-CARE 2), said as much in a talk with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

These women, according to him, suffer a variety of barriers that keep them from accessing services for cervical cancer screening, including economical, cultural, psychological, and academic barriers.

He described cervical cancer screening as an operation to detect precancerous lesions in the cervix and help in the early diagnosis of abnormalities. The techniques include PAP smear, Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid, and Human Papillomavirus (HPV) screening (VIA).

The VIA is the most affordable and accessible of the three, which is why it is used in settings with low resources. "In the VIA method, lesions are categorized as VIA +ve or VIA -ve depending on the colour visible after examination of the cervix colored with acetic acid. Thermal ablation or cryotherapy is used to treat VIA +ve lesions”.

According to Dr. David, 340,000 deaths and more than 600,000 new instances of cervical cancer will be reported worldwide in 2020, making it the fourth most frequent cancer overall. More than 60 million women are thought to be at risk, making it the most common gynaecological cancer in Nigeria. "Although cervical cancer is mostly preventable by screening and immunization, Nigeria ranks among the top five nations that are responsible for more than half of the global deaths from the disease”.

In Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Borno, Bauchi, Kebbi, and Adamawa, he stated, "SFH provides cancer screening services for women among critical population groups living with HIV and AIDS through the USAID-funded KP CARE 2 project. He lists community-based education and sensitization about cervical cancer as well as facility- and community-level screening programs as the aspects of the service delivery.

Other elements include providing rapid care for pre-cancerous lesions discovered using cryotherapy or thermablation and working in collaboration with tertiary healthcare facilities to refer patients with suspected malignant lesions for additional testing and care.

About 2,000 women have been checked as part of the KP-CARE 2 program, and 30 VIA-positive lesions have been found and treated, according to Dr. David.

Additionally, fifteen pre-cancer lesions have been recommended for analysis and care. He said that research in Nigeria has linked the poor acceptance of services for cervical cancer screening to the public's inadequate knowledge of the disease. By applying peer-led information distribution and education initiatives in the communities where its projects are active, SFH is bridging this knowledge gap.

To close the access gap to cervical cancer diagnosis and treatment services, he added, "SFH will continue to broaden its reach by delivering cervical cancer screening facilities into regions where access is limited or absent.

According to NAN, World Cancer Day is observed on February 4th, and the theme for 2023 is "Close The Care Gap." Beginning in 2022 and lasting for three years, the theme would end in 2024.

The purpose is to encourage all parties involved to intensify their efforts to increase access to high-quality care, including screenings, early detection, treatment, and palliative care.