Cervical cancer screening for women is becoming increasingly active in the Western Highlands Province. Recently, the fight against cervical cancer reached Mukapang in the Dei District, where a mobile outreach team from Mt Hagen Provincial Hospital arrived with a crucial mission: to screen, treat, and save lives.
The Western Highlands PHA, through its Elimination of the Cervical Cancer Program (ECCP), has been visiting the four districts of the province, bringing essential screening and treatment directly to the doorsteps of women in rural areas.
On Monday, a total of 65 women from the Tapora community were screened, resulting in seven testing positive for Human Papillomavirus (HPV). All received same-day treatment using thermal ablation, a heat-based method that destroys pre-cancerous cells. The following day, 43 women from Mukapang participated, and 11 tested positive; they also received immediate treatment. By Wednesday, the team reached the Kents community, screening 81 women and treating 13 who tested positive.
For many women, this service is not only convenient but also lifesaving. Lucy Okpul, a 53-year- old mother from Mukapang, expressed her relief: “Planti ol meri i painim hat tru long go long Hagen Hausik long sekim ol yet. Long dispela as, sampela meri ibin die pinis long dispela sik kansa, long nek bilong bilum bilong bebi. Tasol nau, dispel sevis i kam stret long haus dua, na mipela I pilim amamas tru olsem mipela igat bikpla sans long kisim halivim. (Most women find it hard to come to Mt. Hagen Provincial Hospital for a check-up resulting in many dying from cervical cancer. But now, the service is right here, and we are privileged to get ourselves checked)
Similarly, 43-year-old Sabina Sent shared her thoughts: “Mipela sampela i save olsem igat Well Women Klinik istap long Hagen Hausik tasol bus fee emi hat tru na dispel tasol i save stopim mipela long go kisim skul tok na halivim.Nau mipela i amamas tru long wanem, Hagen Hausik i kisim sevis ikam insait long komuniti. (Transportation costs often prevent women from seeking care. Some of us knew about the Well Women Clinic and its services, but bus fare is a problem. Thus, we are grateful that the WHPHA team is bringing the service to us.”
In addition to screening, the outreach program also visits schools around the province to offer HPV vaccines to young girls aged 9 to 14, a preventive measure that mothers like Lucy and Sabina fully support.
“We will encourage our daughters and young girls to get vaccinated,” Lucy said. “For we know it will protect their lives in the long run.”
Josephine Gabuzzi, ECCP’s Project Coordinator, urged women between the ages of 30 and 59 to visit the Well Women Clinic for free screening and checkups. She emphasized that knowing their health status is vital for them to continue living full and healthy lives.
