Vaccination and screening target cervical cancer

Doctors are urging people to be screened and vaccinated in a bid to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040.

NHS England South West said there were more people in the region proportionally who have been diagnosed with cervical cancer than in the rest of England.

Public health consultant Dr Matthew Dominey, the screening and immunisation lead, said the 2040 goal was achievable and encouraged people to have cervical screening and be vaccinated for human papilloma virus (HPV).

He said cervical cancer "absolutely can be eradicated" and evidence from the HPV vaccination programme started in Scotland in 2008 showed no-one fully vaccinated had developed cervical cancer.

Dominey said cervical cancer leads to about 685 deaths in England each year and more than 99% of cases were caused by HPV.

He said the higher average of cases in the region was partly because there was a "really good screening program in South West that is really good at picking up cancer at an early stage".

The other reason was the region being rural, so there were issues around accessing hospital appointments and challenges of public transport that could delay treatments.

Dominey said: "The most important thing is, if you are a woman aged between 25 and 64, attend for your cervical screening appointment.

"For younger people, boys and girls get a vaccination in school."

He said women could check with their GP surgery if they were due for a cervical screening test.

"If you're overdue, they'll be able to book you for appointments, so it's absolutely never too late to go and get screened."

The consultant encouraged anyone who was worried about the cervical cancer screen test to take a friend or family member with them and advised women they could request a female doctor or nurse carry out the test.

Some women may benefit from a familiarisation visit beforehand to see how the test would happen and surgeries would organise that, he added.

Dominey concluded: "There is treatment and we know that this is a disease that, if we get younger people vaccinated, we can prevent and we can eliminate in its entirety if we get people vaccinated."

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