Why is Emzor doing this?
• One in every 100 women test positive to reliable cervical cancer screening procedures e.g. Pap smear.
• 80% of cervical cancer cases occur in developing countries
• It is said to be the 12th most common and the 5th most deadly cancer in women.
Prevention
• Cervical cancer is preventable by screening asymptomatic women for precancerous cervical lesions and treating the lesions before they progress to invasive disease.
• Early detection through screening and early prevention with vaccination remains the best approach to reduce the rate of its prevalence.
Screening Tests
1. Pap test or Pap smear (Cervical cytology): This looks out for precancerous cells changes on the cervix that can be cervical cancer if they are not treated appropriately. This is the most specific test for cervical cancer.
2. HPV tests: This looks out for the virus (Human Papillomavirus) that cause these cell changes.
3. Visual Inspection with acetic acid (VIA). This involves swabbing vinegar (i.e. Acetic acid) on the cervix and health worker looks for areas that change colour. Normal cervical tissue remains unchanged by the acetic acid, but damaged tissue such as found with precancerous or cancerous lesions turn white
The Purple Project – Pap smear.
Pap smear: The doctor uses a plastic or metal instrument called a speculum to widen the vagina. Doctor examines the vagina and the cervix, collects a few cells and mucus from the cervix and the area around it. The cells are then placed on a slide or in a bottle of liquid and sent to a lab, the lab will check to be sure that cells are okay.
How do you participate?
Just register for free here
I hope women will take this seriously. It's done every 5 years in the UK. The late Jade Goody ignored her doctors letters and the rest is history!
ReplyDeleteKudos to Emzor Pharmaceuticals... I hope this initiative is being supported by the government too. You won't believe the ignorance about cervical cancer and pap smears... even some health professionals believe that only promiscuous women need pap smears. My people perish for lack of knowledge...
ReplyDeleteI don't believe that any knowledgable health professional would think that only promiscous women need pap smears. Any sexually active woman needs pap smear, and if it's normal for 2 or 3yrs consecutively and you are in a monogamous r/ship, you can now do it every 2/3yrs instead of annually.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous you'd be surprised. Go to the "best" HMOs in Nigeria and look at their most comprehensive (i.e. expensive) coverage plans and you will see that pap smears are not covered. If you go to some doctor's offices and ask them for a thin prep, they have no idea how you can get that done instead. Trust me our cultural biases cloud the judgement of so called knowledgeable and so called professional health care professionals.
ReplyDeletePLEEEASE EVERY WOMAN READING THIS MUST GO!!! SERIOUSLY>>
ReplyDeleteHALF OF U ARE WALKING AROUND AND DONT KNOW WHATS UP WITH UR INSIDES!!!
PLS CHECK
Where can one get to do a pap smear right now? Please a detaled clinic with address would be helpful. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI need to get this test done now. Don't know how to go about it. I live in lagos state.
ReplyDelete