Estimates of incidence and mortality of cervical cancer in 2018 : A worldwide analysis Arbyn et al ., The Lancet Global Health , Elsevier , ( Feb . 2020 ), CC BY-SA 4.0 creativecommons . org / licenses / by-sa / 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
the virus )! Not until 2018 were |
vaccinations |
recommended |
for |
both sexes . |
|
|
It has been a long time in the making , but now there is real hope for the elimination of at least one form of cancer . But this is an important cancer , as it claims the lives of more than 340,000 women yearly , predominantly in underdeveloped countries . No wonder the WHO established in 2020 the goal of eliminating cervical cancer as a public health problem . If their goals are met , a cumulative total of 62 million lives will be saved by 2120 . It is now accepted that close to 15 % of all human cancers have a viral cause — making them good targets for vaccine development . Science is slow and requires persistence and determination , but it is totally worth it .
Resources
For a brief overview of human papillomaviruses ( HPV ), the recent success of HPV vaccines , and the remaining challenge of bringing the vaccine to where it is needed , see the FAWCO Health Articles by our own Christine Riney ( 2019-2022 FAWCO Health Team Co-Chair ) and Tharien van Eck , AWC Antwerp . Follow their links — they are quite informative .
www . awchamburg . org 15