By Gloria Amoh
A Public Health Practitioner, Dr. Oum Alsoum Zakaria Adam, has underscored the importance of having regular screening tests to help prevent cervical cancer, stressing that it is deadly.
She said once you know about it, you are put on a particular screening schedule that helps you to be able to track your own health and prevent it if you have the infection.
“Once you are able to screen for it, you are able to catch it early and then put in the necessary precautions to stop progression.”
Dr. Oum Alsoum Zakaria Adam stated this on GTV’s breakfast show.
Touching on its causes, she stated that cervical cancer comes from the cervix, which is the mouth of the womb. “Cervical cancer occurs when you have cells that divide uncontrollably such that they become disastrous or do not stay just in the cervix, and sometimes they end up travelling to other parts of the body.”
January is known as ‘Cervical Cancer Awareness Month’ to help educate people on cervical cancer, its causes, treatment, and how to prevent it.
World Health Organisation estimates indicate that a woman dies every two seconds from cervical cancer, and it is the fourth most common cancer in women globally. The highest rates of cervical cancer incidence and mortality are in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), Central America and South-East Asia. In Ghana, it is the leading cause of gynaecological deaths.
Dr. Oum Alsoum Zakaria Adam added that cervical cancer usually has risk factors associated with it, and one of the main risk factors or causes is the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV).
“HPV is usually sexually transmitted, and it has been implicated in about 90% of all cervical cancers. It has a very strong association with cervical cancer.”
Also, she stated that cervical cancer is quite common because in 2018, 3,119 women in Ghana were diagnosed with cervical cancer, and out of that, about 2,115 died. She added that the 3,119 cases were reported to the hospital for treatment, but unfortunately, a lot of them passed away.
“Once you get the infection, you have, sometimes, 15 years to 20 years to screen and then catch up.”
She further urged women with cervical cancer to go to the hospital for screening and treatment.