Cervical cancer screening in Primay Health Care | ICRH

TEAM MEMBERS 

PERIOD 

PARTNERS

• Clara Gonzalez, Alvaro Garcia, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Nicaragua
• Rosa Elena Bello, Servicios Medicos Comunales, San Juan del Sur

OBJECTIVES

• To improve the reproductive health of Nicaraguan women through the implementation of an adequate, integrated pilot programme for cervical cancer screening at 3 levels (population, health care centre, district hospital).

METHODS

• Population-based KAP study at start and end of project
• Set up of screening- and treatment programme
• Monitoring of attendance rate and follow-up rate
• Comparison between cytology and visual inspection as screening tests

ACTIVITIES

• Training of community health workers
• Invitation of target population
• Screening, colposcopy and treatment of precancerous lesions
• Follow-up of women treated
• Dissemination of results

RESULTS

• At the end of the intervention, 63% of women of the target population had attended the screening programme, compared to 42.5% prior to the intervention
• Of patients with abnormal screening tests, 80% attended the colposcopy clinic
• Of women with high-grade lesions, 91% were treated and more than 90% attended the follow-up visits
• Results were dissimated during the national workshops
• Results of the KAP study and the peformance of the screening tests were published in international journals: Trop Med Int Health, 2002 Nov;7(11):935-41 and Trop Med Int Health, 2003 Aug;8(8):704-9.