Princeton Pulse Podcast: Which Country Will Be the First to Wipe Out Cervical Cancer?
The latest episode of The Princeton Pulse Podcast, produced by the Center for Health and Wellbeing (CHW), highlights a potential win in the fight against cervical cancer. Rwanda, a low-income country in Central Africa, could become the first country in the world to eradicate the disease.
Armed with a remarkably ambitious vaccination program for human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes cervical cancer, along with a screen-and-treat program to ensure earlier intervention, this small African country is doing a better job than most wealthy countries. How is this possible, and what can be learned from their efforts?
Host Heather Howard, a professor at Princeton University and former New Jersey Commissioner of Health and Senior Services, dives into these questions and more with Professor Cristina Stefan, director of the Institute of Global Health Equity Research in Rwanda, and Princeton Lecturer Alyssa Sharkey, whose research interests include global health equity and immunization. They discuss why cervical cancer places a heavier burden on women in low- and middle-income countries, the importance of HPV vaccination and expedient intervention, equity considerations, policy solutions and challenges, and lessons learned.
What is one lesson learned from Rwanda's experience that could be applied to your context to fight HPV infection and cervical cancer? Have you tried any of the strategies employed by Rwanda in your context, and what was the result? What are lessons high-income countries could learn from low- or middle-income countries in the fight against HPV infection and cervical cancer?
Share your thoughts in the "Comment" section below!