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Why does Malawi have such high rates of cervical cancer?

And what’s it got to do with the HPV vaccine?

HPV (human papillomavirus) is a sexually transmitted disease that can cause genital warts but often doesn’t have any symptoms. It’s the leading cause of cervical cancer. The HPV vaccine is available for teenage girls in over 125 countries, but only one in eight girls have had it.

Dorcas Wangira, the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ’s Africa Health correspondent joins us to discuss the HPV vaccine and how some countries have used the vaccine to reduce their rates of cervical cancer.

Malawi has one of the highest rates of cervical cancer in the world, after Eswatini and Zambia. Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ reporter Ashley Lime, in Kenya, explains why - and tells us how Malawi is trying to improve cervical cancer treatment by installing new radiotherapy machines.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld
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Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk
Presenter: Hannah Gelbart
Producers: Mora Morrison, Hayley Clarke and Julia Ross-Roy
Editor: Verity Wilde

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11 minutes

Last on

Fri 11 Oct 2024 02:50GMT
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service West and Central Africa

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  • Thu 10 Oct 2024 17:50GMT
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service News Internet
  • Fri 11 Oct 2024 02:50GMT
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service West and Central Africa

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