Nigeria, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cote D’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, and Malawi are among African countries conducting high-performance-based screening tests for Human Papillomavirus, in line with World Health Organisation’s recommendations.
Mozambique, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe are other African countries on the list.
Dr Sharon Kapambwe, the WHO Africa Regional Office's Technical Officer for Cancer Control, revealed this in an interview with PUNCH Online on Tuesday.
Kapambwe mentioned, “Nigeria is one of the 28 member states implementing nationwide HPV vaccination to cover about 60% of the priority population targeted with HPV vaccination.”
She also stated that other countries on the list include “Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cabo Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gambia, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Rwanda, and Sao Tome and Principe.
“Also Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and Zambia are on the list.”
The Federal Government integrated the Human Papillomavirus vaccine into the routine immunisation system on October 24, 2023.
The vaccination aims to reach over seven million girls, the largest number in a single round of HPV vaccination in Africa.
Prof Muhammad Pate, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, recently stated that over 4.95 million eligible girls aged nine to 14 years have been vaccinated against HPV since the launch of the first phase of the vaccine in October 2023, across 15 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
Pate mentioned that the second phase of the HPV vaccine introduction is planned for May 2024.
The vaccine is highly effective in preventing infection with HPV types 16 and 18, which are known to cause at least 70% of cervical cancers.
Kapambwe also noted that health systems in countries yet to immunised, the 60% of the priority population targeted with HPV vaccination, are inadequately prepared to handle the increasing burden of cervical cancer due to limited availability of population-based screening programs, and insufficient access to treatment.
She also pointed out other challenges such as “Shortages and uneven distribution of skilled and specialised human resources, inadequate domestic and donor funding, limited financial protection, high costs, as well as infrastructure and resource constraints, which hinder the expansion of HPV testing; and limited awareness and knowledge, combined with fear and stigma, result in delayed treatment and poor outcomes.”
Cervical cancer is the third most common cancer and the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women aged 15 to 44 in Nigeria.
In 2020, Nigeria had 12,000 new cases and 8,000 deaths from cervical cancer.
According to WHO, about 50% of new cancer cases in adults in Africa are due to breast, cervical, prostate, colorectal, and liver cancers, and if urgent measures are not taken, cancer mortality in the region is projected to reach about one million deaths per year by 2030.
It also predicted that cancer death rates in Africa will exceed the global average of 30 percent in 20 years. This is because the chance of surviving cancer in the WHO African region is currently only 12 percent, much lower than the over 80 percent average in High-Income Countries.
