Are Women Taking Heed of Cervical Cancer Risks?

Laura Tucker-Longsworth

January is observed as cervical cancer awareness month and while the numbers show that quite a lot of women are falling victims to the disease, the Belize Cancer Society has been offering education about the risks of cervical and other forms of preventative cancer. Cervical cancer is caused by the human papilloma virus, but there are two main factors that can help prevent women from developing the disease in the first place: sexual behaviour and vaccination. News Five sat down today with President of the Belize Cancer Society, Laura Tucker-Longsworth to discuss where Belizean women are in heeding that advice.

Laura Tucker-Longsworth, President, Belize Cancer Society

“We have done a lot both at the Ministry of Health level and at our own level in terms of education and interventions in terms of getting people screened and so on.  The human papillomavirus is prevented not only by our own behavior, but also importantly by vaccinations. We have the power to take steps to reduce the likelihood of becoming infected with HPV virus. So we ourselves have to look in terms of our partnerships because the more partners that you interact with, the more likely you are to become infected. And so that is the – as a woman and a man, because men and women are the ones who move it back and forth. Then, unfortunately, women suffer greatly from the cervical cancers and all the changes in the cervix. And we do have to remember that in Belize, we have really an aggressive HPV virus that circulates. When they do the testing of women’s cervices, the cervix, they find the high grade ones, the one that causes cancer. And then of course, you know our men also are vulnerable. It causes cancer: cancer of the penis, oral cancers, and stuff like that. So, we are both, men and women, equally responsible for each other. And I keep saying let’s take care of each other. I know the vaccination rate fell during, over COVID period. Let me start with vaccination, because as prevention, it fell over the COVID period. A recent workshop held late last year with the ministry and partners revealed that the numbers have increased dramatically because schools are in full swing, of course. And then of course, the whole issue of age range, so then that is interesting because you ask, well, are young people being affected? Are middle aged people being affected? What the strategy says is that by the time you’re 35, you should have had at least, and another one by the time you’re 45, so it goes across the board. But our problem that we are finding in Belize, we’re having young people in their twenties with advanced cervical cancer. But they don’t want you to start getting tested too early. So they say for Belize, probably about 25 between 22 and 25 years old and if something is happening, they’ll catch it.”