Cameroon women in UK blaze trail in cervical cancer awareness

Two Cameroon women in the United Kingdom have weighed in their multitask talent, leading the way in an awareness campaign on the problematic of cervical cancer.

The women are merrily leading efforts towards putting cervical cancer dilemma in the African continent in general and Cameroon in particular at bay.

Leading the African Cervical Cancer Action Foundation (ACCAF), a charitable foundation set up to save women’s lives by raising awareness on cervical cancer, the two women; Vivian Epie, the Director General, and Alobwede Sharon Ekwede, as Secretary General.

Their actions, they say, include distributing information on the causes of cervical cancer and the importance of organised cervical cancer prevention programmes to prevent the disease in Africa.

The project, according to the organisation, seeks to engage mutual cooperation amongst African nations to support humanitarian actions in Africa to keep the disease at bay.

“People must have a good understanding of the benefits of cervical screening and HPV vaccination to motivate use of these services where they are available, while doctors, nurses and other health care providers must have accurate and up-to-date information about cervical screening and vaccination so they can answer questions from their patients and encourage them to use these services. Political leaders too must be informed about the benefits of cervical screening so they understand the importance of prioritizing these programmes,” says Alobwede Sharon, Secretary General of ACCAF.

In most developing countries cancer has been a health priority and like nutritional, parasitic and infectious diseases it has presented a greater and more immediate challenge. Consequently, victims of cancer and other chronic diseases generate their own interventions to cope with their conditions.

Five years ago, 715,000 new cases of cancer and 542,000 new cancer deaths were recorded in Africa, rendering cancer an emerging public health concern. These numbers are likely to double within the next 20 years for the reasons mentioned above.

In Cameroon, an estimated 15,000 new cases are diagnosed annually and a prevalence of about 25,000 cases exists throughout the country. A recent study by Cameroon’s National Institute of Statistics gave the country a glimpse of the overall Age Standardized Incidence Rate (ASR) for all cancers between 2006 and 2011.

The study revealed incidence rates of 44.35 per 100,000 in males and 62.35 in females. In fact, going by official statistics on cancer rates in Cameroon, women are heavily burdened across the scale of the different types of cancer incidences. Cancer in particular and research in general is given very little attention in Africa (Cameroon) due to the lack of funding.

“There is therefore the need in Africa for the continuous promotion of health research in cancer management and Cervical Cancer Awareness could be elevated to priority status in Africa,” says Dr Eko Alain, Cameroon representative of ACCAF.

Cervical cancer screening programmes can prevent up to 80% of cervical cancers. In addition, vaccines against the Human papillomavirus (HPV) are highly effective when given to adolescents and can reduce cervical cancer rates even further.

The ultimate goal of ACCAF accordingly is to foster wellness in the community, promote good health and healthcare system and to be a leading provider of medical, social, health advice, educational and other humanitarian activities to the disadvantaged and marginalized population in Africa.

According to statistics, 60,000 women in Africa develop cervical cancer and 30,000 die from it every year, while the number of women living with cervical cancer (being treated or otherwise) at any one point in time in Africa is over 175,000.