Preventive medicine
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Preventive medicine · Mar 2021
ReviewElimination of cervical cancer in U.S. Hispanic populations: Puerto Rico as a case study.
Cervical cancer remains a major burden for women around the world. In 2018, the World Health Organization called for the elimination of cervical cancer worldwide (<4 cases per 100,000 women-years), within the 21st century. In the U. ⋯ To achieve the goal of cervical cancer elimination in the U. S., systematic elimination plans that consider the needs of Hispanic populations should be included within the Comprehensive Cancer Control Plans of each state. Because PR has implemented coordinated efforts for the prevention and control of cervical cancer, it represents a notable case study for examining strategies that can lead to cervical cancer elimination among Hispanics.
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Achieving the World Health Organisation (WHO) cervical cancer elimination target of fewer than four new cases per 100,000 woman-years requires scaling up HPV vaccination of girls, cervical screening, and pre-cancer and cancer treatment. We reviewed data from four high-income colonised countries (Australia, Canada, Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ), and the United States (US)) to identify how each is currently performing compared to the cervical cancer incidence elimination and triple-intervention targets, nationally and in Indigenous women. We also summarise barriers and enablers to meeting targets for Indigenous women. ⋯ Large inequities in cervical cancer currently exist for Indigenous peoples in Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the US, and elimination is not on track for all women in these countries. Current data gaps hinder improvements. These countries must urgently address their systemic failure to care and provide health care for Indigenous women.
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Preventive medicine · Mar 2021
ReviewElimination of HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancers in Nordic countries.
Incidence of human papillomavirus (HPV, most notably HPV type 16) associated oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) among middle-aged (50-69 year-old) males has tripled in four high income Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden) over the last 30 years. In Finland and Sweden, this increase was preceded by an HPV16 epidemic in fertile-aged populations in the 1980's. ⋯ However, beyond the adolescent and young adult birth cohorts vaccinated, there are approximately 50 birth cohorts (born in 1995 or before) that would benefit from screening for HPV-associated OPSCC. This article reviews the need, prerequisites, proof-of-concept trial and prospects of preventing HPV-associated OPSCC in the Nordic countries.
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Preventive medicine · Mar 2021
ReviewReducing cervical cancer deaths in women living with HIV: PEPFAR and the Go Further partnership.
Women with HIV bear a significant burden of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) related cervical disease, and a have a higher risk of dying from cervical cancer should it occur. WLH have increased acquisition of HPV and decreased clearance, leading to persistent HPV infection: a risk for cervical cancer. The greatest burden of HIV in women occurs in sub-Saharan Africa where diagnostic and treatment services for cervical disease are limited. This paper will describe the epidemiology of HPV related cervical disease in women living with HIV (WLH) and the efforts to treat precursor lesions in HIV treatment programs supported by the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR.
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Preventive medicine · Mar 2021
ReviewElimination of cervical cancer: Lessons learned from polio and earlier eradication programs.
This paper reviews definitions of control, elimination, and eradication and considers lessons learned from prior and current elimination/eradication efforts that might inform the current effort to eliminate cervical cancer. This task is complicated by the varying definitions of elimination extant. Lessons for cervical cancer elimination notably include the necessity for political will/champions; the need for a specific target with a time span; the need for program efforts to be guided by surveillance of disease and death (not just coverage); the need for accountability, monitoring, and evaluation at all levels; and the need for ongoing research. Although achieving the goal of elimination will be difficult, success will mean the prevention of millions of deaths due to cervical cancer.