Moving forward to end cervical cancer by 2030

The 8th Stop Cervical, Breast and Prostate Cancer in Africa (SCCA) conference was held in Windhoek, Namibia from the 20-22 July.

Co-hosted by the the Office of the First Lady of the Republic of Namibia, with the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) and in collaboration with various key partners, the theme of the conference was 'Moving forward to end Cervical Cancer by 2030: Universal Access to Cervical Cancer Prevention'.

The burden of reproductive system cancers has been increasing in many low- and middle- income countries. Worldwide, three quarters of cervical cancer cases occur in developing countries where programmes for screening and treatment are deficient. Although it is preventable and treatable, cervical cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer mortality among sub-Saharan African women.

Riccardo Lampariello, Head of the Global Education and Training Initiative (GETI) at UICC attended the conference and took part in panel discussions about the importance of cancer control plans to adress the African training needs in a sustainable manner and the worrying 'brain drain' trend in countries such as Namibia.

In her Goodwill Message at the conference, Margaret Chan, Director General of WHO, said that while Africa's capacity to treat all forms of cancer has traditionally been weak, this conference marked a turning point.

"Namibia was one of the earliest initiators of cancer control in Africa. For cervical cancer, the country is again playing a pioneering role."

In his keynote address, President Hifikepunye Lucas Pohamba urged Governments, Regional Economic Communities and the African Union to co-ordinate interventions and work together to effectively expand and modernize health care delivery in the continent.

The Windhoek declaration, which was signed by the African First Ladies on the last day, pledged to intensify advocacy for HPV vaccinations in an attempt to prevent cervical cancer.

The 2015 SCCA Conference will be hend in Nairobi, Kenya.

Click on the file to the left of the screen to listen to Riccardo's interview on SABC news, about the troubling shortage of healthcare workers in Africa.