CE160/INF/6 - Regional Strategy and Plan of Action for Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control: Final Report

Background 

1. Cervical cancer is the fourth most frequent cancer among women in the Americas, with an estimated 83,200 women newly diagnosed and 35,680 dying each year (1). Cervical cancer is largely preventable, through Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination during early adolescence and through screening and treatment of precancerous lesions among women 30 years of age and older. Cervical cancer screening using the Papanicolaou test has been implemented since the 1960s, and in developed countries with robust health systems it has led to an approximately 50% reduction in cervical cancer mortality (2). But this strategy has proven less effective in developing countries, mainly because of issues related to infrastructure and equipment, logistical challenges associated with the screening procedures, and characteristics of the test itself. 

2. As a result, cervical cancer incidence and mortality remains high in Latin America and the Caribbean...