The fight against cervical cancer gets a big boost from donations of records as Pacific island countries step up screenings

It is the leading cause of cancer death among women in the Pacific, and is so prevalent that one health expert says it affects “everyone you talk to” in the region. I am.

Women in the Pacific are 14 times more likely to die from cervical cancer than in Australia, but record philanthropic donations are expected to change that.

The Kirby Research Institute at the University of New South Wales receives its largest donation to date, approximately $26 million, from UK-based company The Swire Group to support cervical cancer screening and treatment in seven Pacific countries. received.

The Kirby Institute, which fights infectious diseases, will use the scheme to support more than 130,000 women in Fiji, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Samoa.

Vanessa Price, senior program manager for the Kirby Institute's Asia-Pacific Health Program, said cervical cancer is the leading cause of death in the region, despite being preventable.

“This investment will enable us to work with countries over the next five years and save lives,” she said.

Samoa's Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata'afa said cervical cancer was devastating for women, families and entire communities across the Pacific.

“This generous investment will enable countries like Samoa to partner with the Kirby Institute to advance our vision of a world without cervical cancer,” she said.

“Game changer”

Price said that in the Pacific region, “everyone you talk to is affected by cervical cancer.”

In the Western Pacific, an estimated 145,700 women were diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2020, and 74,900 died from the largely preventable disease.

Almost all cases of cervical cancer are caused by human papillomavirus, or HPV, infection.

He said the donation will be used to further provide cervical cancer testing in Pacific Island countries, including a new service that allows women to receive their results on the same day they are tested.

”[Women] “You collect your own sample, it is tested on the spot, and the results are returned within an hour or two,” she said.

Women who test positive for HPV can be treated the same day, and Price said this approach would be a “game changer” in tackling the high incidence of cervical cancer.

“Previous approaches required invasive pelvic exams, which could take weeks or months to get results,” she says.

Ni-Vanuatu woman Hanson Siva believes the new service may have saved her life.

When a local hospital posted on social media that it was offering HPV testing, Shiva decided to get tested.

“I took the test and an hour later I was told it was positive…and the woman asked me, 'Can I take it?' [be treated]?Let's get you treated right away,' and I accepted,'' she said.

“From the moment the nurse told me, 'I'm positive,' I was worried because I knew I was a single mother living with my children. How should I treat her?”

Six months after her same-day test results, she went for a checkup and the HPV test was negative.

Ms Siva said it had been an “easy” experience and she hoped the donation would enable other women in Vanuatu to access this service.

“I encourage all women to get medical checkups, check themselves and seek treatment before it's too late,” she said.

Without early detection through screening, most women with HPV infection or early cervical disease have no symptoms and will go on to develop cervical cancer.

Maitonga Lulu Soeso, a village leader in Mele, Vanuatu, lost his wife to cervical cancer 12 days after being hospitalized. Their child was 9 months old at the time.

“She grabbed my hand and left quietly,” he said.

He is currently involved in an effort to encourage women to get HPV testing.

“Please use this money to get a medical check-up,” he said.

Efforts towards eradication

The gift to the Kirby Institute builds on the success of early cervical cancer treatment programs, which were hampered by the diversity and often remote geography of Pacific countries.

Vanessa Price, from the institute, said: “Countries have done a really great job of embracing this agenda and moving things forward, but we also need to support a wider range of countries with evidence-based support. We need to continue to advocate together with other countries for this to continue.”

In Fiji, Ministry of Health official Rachel Devi will coordinate the deployment of donations to the cervical cancer programme.

Ms Devi, who manages the country's reproductive, maternal, neonatal, child, adolescent and sexual health programme, said the donation was a major boost for Fiji.

“I'm personally very excited and looking forward to implementing this program,” she said.

Despite the high prevalence of the disease, she is hopeful that the Pacific region can significantly reduce cervical cancer.

“There's no doubt that eradication is on the horizon in the near future, and that's definitely something to look forward to and hope for,” she said.