Awareness events are held throughout the year for different reasons, including health and wellbeing issues. These events provide an opportunity to educate the masses and raise awareness all over the world.
Cervical Health Awareness Month is observed annually in January, to educate and inform women of all ages about the possible dangers and how maintaining good cervical health can help reduce the risk of this serious disease.
Through such events, they can be more informed about their cervical health, making it easier to detect any health issues at an early stage and get access to the best treatment.
With different themes being celebrated every year, the 2023 Cervical Cancer Awareness Month has focused on “ending cervical cancer within a few generations.”
Cervical cancer develops in a woman’s cervix, with almost all cases being linked to infection with high risk human papillomavirus (HPV), an extremely common virus transmitted through sexual contact.
Even though most infections with HPV resolve spontaneously and cause no symptoms, persistent infection can cause cervical cancer in women.
There are likely to be no symptoms during the early stages of cervical cancer .However, more observable symptoms are experienced as the disease progresses;
-Bleeding if a woman is post-menopausal.
-Pain after sexual intercourse.
-Bleeding between periods or after sexual intercourse.
-Vaginal discharge that has a foul smell or some blood in it.
-Pain in the pelvic area
There are different ways of getting involved in the month long event. People can share educative articles, webinars and videos on cervical cancer awareness and also take part in online conversations with the hashtag #cervicalhealthmonth.
During this cervical cancer awareness month, individuals are also encouraged to work towards building a healthier community through educating others on the importance of regular cervical cancer screening, the need of improving access to HPV vaccination and on ways of managing cervical cancer.
Buying the teal and white ribbons which were created with an aim those with cervical cancer is also a creative way of taking part in the awareness campaign.
Cervical health is important for all women and it is therefore important to share knowledge on ways that people can reduce their risks to avoid this life-changing disease.
BY STACY ODHIAMBO