Women's Health Initiative Cervical Cancer Prevention
9
Healthcare practitioners trained to become trainers
78
Healthcare practitioners certified in cervical cancer ablation treatment
124
Healthcare practitioners certified in screening tecnique
1,117
Women who tested positive for pre-cancerous lesions & received immediate ablation treatment
13,877
Women screened for cervical cance
Why this work is important
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Cervical cancer is nearly 100% preventable, yet the annual worldwide burden is 660 new cases and 350,000 deaths. It impacts the entire family, as a sufferer is unable to attend to her children and other responsibilities. In addition, research shows that children who are orphaned due to cervical cancer are likely to suffer from undernourishment, neglect and higher than average mortality. However, early detection, when a woman is asymptomatic, can save lives.
“My mother died of cervical cancer, because it was detected too late. My son needs a mother. That is why I came for screening.”
Methodology
Our key to success is a partnership model that empowers and trains local healthcare providers in areas where expertise and capacity are suboptimal. We utilize "see and treat" techniques developed by Johns Hopkins Program for International Education in Gynecology and Obstetrics. According to Journal of the American Medical Association and Journal of the National Cancer Institute, it is the most cost-effective (fewest dollars spent per life-year saved) cervical cancer prevention strategy for low resource areas.
Artificial Intelligence
Project HANDS is proud to be an early adopter of CerviCARE® artificial intelligence. This AI Cervical Cancer Screening System provides enhanced accuracy and efficiency in cervical cancer screening.
We wish to thank NTL Healthcare for their collaboration and generosity in providing access to this groundbreaking technology.
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Where We Work
and Why
Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh is the world’s largest refugee settlement, sheltering more than 1 million Rohingya who have been displaced from Myanmar. Our Women’s Health Initiative goes beyond just screening. Through community-led awareness programs, we aim to destigmatize HPV, create a pathway to reproductive health literacy, increase screening uptake, and prevent cervical cancer.
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Tak Province, Thailand is home to a large population of refugees and displaced persons who have fled Myanmar to escape war and oppression. Women in refugee camps are at risk for cervical cancer, due to the prevalence of the HPV virus and lack of screening programs. Prior to launching the program, 90% had never been screened.
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Liberia faces one of the highest burdens of cervical cancer globally. It is the leading cause of female cancer-related deaths. Lack of awareness and screening capacity are major contributors to the prevalence.
Cervical cancer is the second leading cause of female cancer deaths in Ghana. Every year, more than 3,000 Ghanaian women are diagnosed and more than 2,000 die, constituting a mortality to incidence ratio of 60%.
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According to WHO, Myanmar has the second worst healthcare system in the world, spending less than US$20 annually per capita on healthcare. Women are given low priority and often find themselves at the back of the line. Every year, more than 5,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer, and an estimated 3,000 lose their lives to the disease.
Bolivia has one of the world's highest rates of cervical cancer, with more than 2,000 new cases and 900 attributable deaths per year. Prior to introducing the program, only 15% of eligible women were screened, and less than half of those screened followed up for the results.