By Regina Otokpa

The Executive Director, End Cervical Cancer Nigeria Initiative (ECCNI) Dr. Ishak Lawal has said Nigeria can eliminate cervical cancer if stakeholders in the sector synergise their activities.

Lawal who spoke ahead of the Stakeholders’ Summit on Cervical Cancer Elimination in Nigeria (SSCCEN), said significant progress has been made both at global and national levels towards achieving the three targets of 90% vaccination coverage of adolescent girls with the HPV vaccine, 70% screening of women with high performance screening test by the age of 35yrs and 45yrs, and 90 per cent of women with pre-invasive and invasive lesions of the cervix.

This came as the organisation noted that Dr. Zainab Shinkafi Bagudu, Dr.Ramatu Hassan, Senator Ibrahim Oloriegbe, Yusuf Tanko Sununu, Dr. Faisal Shuaib, Alhaji Mohammed Alkali and UNICEF-Nigeria would be honoured with the Cervical Cancer Elimination Service Award (CCESA) established to recognise individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to achieving cervical cancer elimination targets in Nigeria.

In a statement made available to journalists yesterday in Abuja, the organisation stated that the World Health Organization (WHO) launched Cervical Cancer Elimination Initiative (CCEI), adding that the roadmap to cervical cancer elimination was launched on the 17th November 2020.

“The initiative was initially thought to be ambitious. The initiative proposes that the world will achieve the cervical cancer elimination threshold of less the four cases per 100,000 women by the turn of the century.

“This is if every country achieves and sustains three targets of; 90% vaccination coverage of adolescent girls with the HPV vaccine between the ages of 9 to 14yrs.

“70% screening of women with high performance screening test by the age of 35yrs and 45yrs, and 90% of women with pre-invasive and invasive lesions of the cervix. “Significant progress as been made both at global and national levels towards achieving these targets.”