World Cancer Day

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Cancer can be prevented too: Raising awareness on the prevention of cancer-related infections
 
The aim of this year’s World Cancer Day is to raise awareness of the prevention of cancer-related infections, an area relevant to cervical cancer. Did you know…
 
• Globally, cervical cancer kills one woman every two minutes,1 affecting over 1.4 million women worldwide2
• Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women aged between 15-45 and the third leading cause of cancer death among women, after breast and lung cancer2
• 21 women in the UAE died of cervical cancer in 20071
• It is estimated that up to 80 per cent of women will acquire an HPV infection in their lifetime3,4,5
• For the majority of women the virus is cleared by the immune system. However, if infection with cancer-causing HPV persists women are at risk of developing cervical cancer6
• By 2020, it is expected that developing countries will account for 90 per cent of cervical cancer deaths worldwide7
 
Dr Muna El Kuwari, Director of Primary Healthcare For the Ministry of Health said:
“Cervical cancer can be a silent killer. Many women are completely uninformed about the causes of this disease, and unaware that they can take steps to protect themselves against it. World Cancer Day provides an ideal opportunity to raise awareness of this disease and emphasise the importance of early detection and prevention through combined screening and vaccination programmes.”

But……
• These facts are relatively unknown and many women do not fully understand the cause of cervical cancer or that they could be at risk

Dr Muna El Kuwari, Director of Primary Healthcare For the Ministry of Health added:
“Everyone has an important role to play in the fight against cervical cancer, and we are lucky to now be in a position where we can prevent the disease through combined cervical screening and vaccination programmes. It is important that these programmes are prioritised at a national level, in order that we achieve a drop in the burden of this disease.”

This is why….
GSK is supporting World Cancer Day. This year’s event, led by the International Union Against Cancer (UICC) on the 4 February, focuses on how the risk of developing cancer can significantly be reduced through simple measures including protection against cancer-causing infections.
Dr. Ali Ziwar, Medical and Regulatory Director for GSK Gulf and Near East said:
“GSK is proud to be supporting World Cancer Day, which is such an important awareness day which succeeds in increasing the knowledge and understanding of cervical cancer. We believe it is crucial to communicate to women that cervical cancer is a highly preventable disease, as this will encourage them to seek long term protection.”
 
“Today, we have the ability to protect women from cervical cancer through combined vaccination and cervical screening programmes. For these reasons, World Cancer Day is an important time to communicate about the disease so that we can all play an important part in reducing the burden of this disease in the future.”

To find out more about World Cancer Day, source patient case studies, interesting statistics about cervical cancer or find out about local events:
- http://www.worldcancercampaign.org/
Telephone: +41 22 809 1811
Email: worldcancercampaign@uicc.org
 

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