Chennai, Apr 27:
The State’s first HPV vaccination initiative to prevent cervical cancer was launched at Adyar Cancer Institute’s screening centre, at Villupuram Government Hospital (GH). About 150 girls, aged nine to 14 years, received the first dose of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.
There are now plans to create awareness on the importance of vaccination in the prevention of cervical cancer at the community-level.
Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women in India and most of them are diagnosed at an advanced stage, says Jayashree Natarajan, gynaecologic oncologist, Associate Professor, Cancer Institute.
WIA’s assistant director Dr R Swaminathan, who is also head of the department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Cancer Registry said, factors such as improved personal hygiene, late marriages, less number of children, and screening are likely to have contributed to the decrease in cervical cancer.
Dr P Sampath, assistant professor in the same department said more studies should be conducted to know the risk factors for cervical cancer. Regular screening should be done and awareness and vaccination should be promoted among school students, he added.
In contrast, the incidence of breast cancer seems to be on the rise in Chennai, according to the report, with one in 17 people at risk. The CIR for breast cancer in Chennai, which was 16.6 in 1987-91, jumped to 52.1 in 2018. This is nearly double of the state’s figure of 27.
Dr Swaminathan said early menarche, late menopause, no breastfeeding, and first childbirth at a later age are some of the risk factors for breast cancer. He added while cervical cancer is decreasing in all districts, breast cancer is increasing.
