Plea to election hopefuls over cervical cancer
Election candidates were today called on to save women’s lives and beat cervical cancer.
Two charities joined forces to put cancer prevention at the top of the General Election agenda and get politicians to commit to improving cervical cancer prevention services.
Jo’s Trust Fighting Cervical Cancer and the All Ireland Cancer Foundation have sent postcards to every candidate across the country’s 42 constituencies asking them to help reduce the number of women who die from the disease.
Cervical cancer claims the lives of more than 70 women every year.
“Ireland has one of the highest cervical cancer rates in Western Europe,” said Jo’s Trust Director Pamela Morton.
“Every year approximately 190 Irish women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 73 will die from this cancer. I hope that candidates from all parties recognise the importance of our campaign and use the present election campaign to support it.”
The postcards ask each candidate to pledge to call on the Department of Health & Children, to implement a nationwide cervical screening programme at the earliest possible date, to introduce an education programme on the causes of cervical cancer, its prevention and the importance of attending for screening and to introduce a Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programme in secondary schools across the Republic at the earliest possible date.
HPV types 16 and 18 cause 75% of all cervical cancers.
A combination of organised national screening and vaccination programmes offers the first realistic opportunity to eradicate a cancer in future generations.
However, most Irish women do not currently have access to a cervical screening programme. Phase 1 of the Irish Cervical Screening Programme (ICSP) has been offering free cervical screening to women aged 25-60 years in the Mid West area since October 2000.
Ms Morton welcomed last week’s announcement that cervical cancer screening will be available nationwide from November this year and the Fianna Fáil election manifesto pledge to make the new cervical cancer vaccine available free to everyone.
But she stressed that too many lives have already been lost, and unless swift action is taken many more will die unnecessarily.
“Irish women want the next Minister for Health & Children and the new Dail to prioritise health issues that they rightly feel have being neglected, including improved cervical screening and uptake, as well as the introduction of vaccination and education programmes at the earliest possible date,” she said.
The development of vaccines to prevent infection with specific types of HPV, which have been identified by research as the principal causes of cervical cancer, are acknowledged as a major scientific breakthrough in cervical cancer prevention.
“Cervical cancer is preventable through increased screening and the introduction of a vaccination programme for 11 to 12 year old children,” Dr Henrietta Campbell from the All Ireland Cancer Foundation added.
“Any delay in this programme will unacceptably put young women’s lives at risk. It is time for cervical cancer to become a priority on the political agenda.”
