Utility of colposcopy for the screening and management of cervical cancer in Africa: a cross-sectional analysis of providers' training and practices.

Introduction: Cervical cancer is a public health issue in Africa with devastating socioeconomic consequences due to the lack of organized screening programs. The success of screening programs depends on the appropriate investigation and management of women who test positive for screening. Colposcopic assessment following positive screening results is a noteworthy issue in Africa.

HPV vaccination in Africa in the COVID-19 era: a cross-sectional survey of healthcare providers' knowledge, training, and recommendation practices.

Introduction: Although the burden of cervical cancer in Africa is highest, HPV vaccination coverage remains alarmingly low in this region. Providers' knowledge and recommendation are key drivers of HPV vaccination uptake. Yet, evidence about providers' knowledge and recommendation practices about the HPV vaccine against a backdrop of emerging vaccine hesitancy fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic is lacking in Africa.

Developing and sustaining high-quality care for children with cancer: the WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer.

Cancer is a major public health concern, impacting nearly 20 million people each year, and it is responsible for 1 in 6 deaths worldwide. The burden of cancer is increasing rapidly, straining health systems that are unable to prevent and manage the disease. Childhood cancer constitutes a significant and relevant public health challenge; it was the ninth leading cause of childhood disease globally, according to findings by the Global Burden of Disease 2017 study.

Socioeconomic inequalities in cervical precancer screening among women in Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe: analysis of Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment surveys.

Objectives: We examined age, residence, education and wealth inequalities and their combinations on cervical precancer screening probabilities for women. We hypothesised that inequalities in screening favoured women who were older, lived in urban areas, were more educated and wealthier.

Design: Cross-sectional study using Population-Based HIV Impact Assessment data.

The World Health Organization targets for cervical cancer control by 2030: a baseline assessment in six African countries-part I.

Aim: We present and analyse the findings of a survey of the readiness of the healthcare systems in Eswatini, Guinea, Malawi, Rwanda, Uganda and Zambia, to implement the necessary measures for attaining the targets for cervical cancer control, set by The World Health Organization (WHO), by the year 2030.

Methods: A questionnaire with 129 questions with preset answer options was completed in 2020, by ministries of health programme coordinators for non-communicable diseases, cancer control and/or reproductive health, and by WHO country offices, in the six countries selected.

Results: The findings on demographics, burden of disease, governance and management, laboratory services, equipment, supplies and medicines, as well as on personnel and training are presented here.

Targeting elimination of cervical cancer by 2030: a baseline assessment in six African countries-part II.

Background: Africa is home to many countries with the highest incidence of cervical cancer in the world. It is encouraging to see that the efforts to prevent and manage this disease are intensifying across the continent. The World Health Organization (WHO) has, in the last years, led a world-wide initiative to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem, starting by setting clear targets for 2030.

Zambia cervical cancer control program resource mapping - Leveraging support to achieve the 90-70-90 elimination target.

Background: Zambia has one of the highest incidence and mortality rates of cervical cancer at 65.5 and 43.4 per 100 000 respectively.

Priorities for cancer research in low- and middle-income countries: a global perspective.

Cancer research currently is heavily skewed toward high-income countries (HICs), with little research conducted in, and relevant to, the problems of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This regional discordance in cancer knowledge generation and application needs to be rebalanced. Several gaps in the research enterprise of LMICs need to be addressed to promote regionally relevant research, and radical rethinking is needed to address the burning issues in cancer care in these regions.

Implementation research to accelerate scale-up of national screen and treat strategies towards the elimination of cervical cancer.

Background: Cervical cancer is a significant public health problem, with 570,000 new cases and 300,000 deaths of women per year globally, mostly in low- and middle-income countries. In 2018 the WHO Director General made a call to action for the elimination of cervical cancer as a public health problem.

Main Body: New thinking on programmatic approaches to introduce emerging technologies and screening and treatment interventions of cervical precancer at scale is needed to achieve elimination goals.

Prioritizing Health-Sector Interventions for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries in Low- and Lower-Middle Income Countries: National NCDI Poverty Commissions.

Health sector priorities and interventions to prevent and manage noncommunicable diseases and injuries (NCDIs) in low- and lower-middle-income countries (LLMICs) have primarily adopted elements of the World Health Organization Global Action Plan for NCDs 2013-2020. However, there have been limited efforts in LLMICs to prioritize among conditions and health-sector interventions for NCDIs based on local epidemiology and contextually relevant risk factors or that incorporate the equitable distribution of health outcomes. The Commission on Reframing Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries for the Poorest Billion supported national NCDI Poverty Commissions to define local NCDI epidemiology, determine an expanded set of priority NCDI conditions, and recommend cost-effective, equitable health-sector interventions.

The use of thermal ablation in diverse cervical cancer "screen-and-treat" service platforms in Zambia.

Objective: Thermal ablation (TA) was implemented in public sector cervical cancer prevention services in Zambia in 2012. Initially introduced as a treatment modality in primary healthcare clinics, it was later included in mobile outreach campaigns and clinical research trials. We report the feasibility, acceptability, safety, and provider uptake of TA in diverse clinical contexts.

Cervical cancer screening outcomes in Zambia, 2010-19: a cohort study.

Background: Globally, cervical cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer-related death among women. Poor uptake of screening services contributes to the high mortality. We aimed to examine screening frequency, predictors of screening results, and patterns of sensitisation strategies by age group in a large, programmatic cohort.

Achieving equity in cervical cancer screening in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs): Strengthening health systems using a systems thinking approach.

The World Health Organization (WHO) is leading a call to action to eliminate cervical cancer by the end of the century through global implementation of two effective evidence-based preventive interventions: HPV vaccination and cervical screening and management (CSM). Models estimate that without intervention, over the next 50 years 12.2 million new cases of cervical cancer will occur, nearly 60% of which are preventable only through CSM.

Minimizing Delays in the Breast Cancer Pathway by Integrating Breast Specialty Care Services at the Primary Health Care Level in Zambia.

Purpose: In Zambia, more than two-thirds of female patients with breast cancer present with late-stage disease, leading to high mortality rates. Most of the underlying causes are associated with delays in symptom recognition and diagnosis. By implementing breast care specialty services at the primary health care level, we hypothesized that some of the delays could be minimized.

Challenges, Opportunities, and Priorities for Advancing Breast Cancer Control in Zambia: A Consultative Meeting on Breast Cancer Control.

In 2016, the Zambian government made cancer control a national priority and released a National Cancer Control Strategic Plan for 2016 to 2021, which focuses on malignancies of the breast, cervix, and prostate, and retinoblastoma. The plan calls for a collective reduction in the cancer burden by 50%. In support of this vision, Susan G.

Differences in Cervical Cancer Screening Knowledge and Practices by HIV Status and Geographic Location: Implication for Program Implementation in Zambia.

The knowledge and perceptions of cervical cancer among HIV negative and positive women, aged 25-49 years, from rural and urban locations in Zambia was systematically accessed in this study to determine any differences. Data were coded and analyzed using NVivo software. Compared to HIV negative women, HIV positive women had more accurate information about cervical cancer.

Partnering with traditional Chiefs to expand access to cervical cancer prevention services in rural Zambia.

Objective: To evaluate how the influence of traditional Chiefs can be leveraged to promote access to cervical cancer prevention services in rural Zambia.

Methods: A retrospective review of outcome data was conducted for all screening outreach events that occurred in Zambian Chiefdoms between October 4, 2015, and October 3, 2016. Members of the health promotion team of the Cervical Cancer Prevention Program in Zambia visited local Chiefs to inform them of the importance of cervical cancer prevention.

Assessing capacity and readiness to manage NCDs in primary care setting: Gaps and opportunities based on adapted WHO PEN tool in Zambia.

Introduction: Sub-Saharan Africa is experiencing an epidemiological transition as the burden of NCDs overtake communicable diseases. However, it is unknown what capacity and gaps exist at primary care level to address the growing burden of NCDs. This study aimed to assess the Zambian health system's capacity to address in NCDs, using an adapted WHO Essential Non Communicable Disease Interventions (WHO PEN) tool.

Patient Preferences and Willingness to Pay for Cervical Cancer Prevention in Zambia: Protocol for a Multi-Cohort Discrete Choice Experiment.

Background: Although most countries in southern Africa have cervical cancer screening programs, these programs generally fail to reach a significant majority of women because they are often implemented as pilot or research projects, and this limits their scope and ability to scale up screening. Some countries have planned larger-scale programs, but these have either never been implemented or have not been successfully scaled up. Most of the global burden of cervical cancer is experienced in countries with limited resources, and mortality from cervical cancer is the most common cause of cancer-related deaths among women in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Demonstration of an algorithm to overcome health system-related barriers to timely diagnosis of breast diseases in rural Zambia.

Background: Long delays to diagnosis is a major cause of late presentation of breast diseases in sub-Saharan Africa.

Aims: We designed and implemented a single-visit breast care algorithm that overcomes health system-related barriers to timely diagnosis of breast diseases.

Methods: A multidisciplinary team of Zambian healthcare experts trained a team of mid- and high-level Zambian healthcare practitioners how to evaluate women for breast diseases, and train trainers to do likewise.