The Anambra governor’s wife, Mrs. Nonye Soludo, says she is hopeful that the expected delivery of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to the state will bring to an end the era of the dangerous disease.

 

Mrs. Soludo stated this in a message to kick off the Cervical Cancer Awareness Month in Anambra State.

 

Cervical Cancer Awareness Month is commemorated globally in January to increase awareness and education on the prevalence and threat of the fourth commonest cancer among women, and also to get more stakeholders involved in the fight to completely take it out.

 

In her message, the governor’s wife said that the HPV vaccine which is billed to arrive in Anambra State on the shortest date, will complement existing efforts that have been put in place by the current administration to push back the disease.

 

Mrs. Soludo noted that while the wait is on, it is also imperative to continue to raise awareness on existential threat of cervical cancer among women and girls, and to also educate women more on the need to go for regular check-ups, with the understanding that early detection is key to the whole process.

 

She explained that the count of women and girls who have been affected by the disease calls for a more strategic approach, adding that stakeholders and advocates should take cervical cancer education beyond digital windows to physical education to reach more rural people.

 

Mrs. Soludo also spoke about beating the phobia and stigma that come with cervical cancer and noted that while women must stop seeing the disease as a death sentence, those leading the advocacy also need to educate people that cervical cancer is treatable and that its patients are not as unfortunate as they may think.

 

She further explained that through a partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO) and Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), over five thousand women have been screened free of charge, while those whose diagnosis came back positive were treated at no costs, pointing out that the state is currently expanding the intervention to reach out to more women and girls, especially those living in the rural areas.

 

The Anambra governor’s wife, who is a Cervical Cancer Ambassador, equally appealed to women and girls in their reproductive age to take cervical cancer screening seriously, stating that if diagnosed early, the disease can be easily treated.

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