Department of Medical Services, National Cancer Institute Inviting the public to join the campaign against cervical cancer. Recommend avoiding risk factors for disease. Get regular cervical cancer screening. and vaccinate against HPV infection Dr. Weerawut Imsamran, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Medical Services, said that cervical cancer is the 4th most common cancer among women worldwide. In 2020, an average of 604,000 new patients were found, with approximately 342,000 deaths, of which 90 percent of the patients Those who died were in low- and middle-income countries. Cervical cancer has been considered an important public health problem in Thailand since 1989, which found the incidence of cervical cancer to be number 1 among Thai women. After that, there was a push for a national cervical cancer screening policy, causing the incidence. Cervical cancer has a continuous trend of decreasing, with cervical cancer currently ranked 5th among the most common cancers in Thai women. There are an a verage of 15 new cases per day, or 5,422 people/year, and an average of 6 deaths per day, or 2,238 people/year. The main cause of cervical cancer is infection with HPV (Human papillomavirus). Dr. Panwad Rattanasrithong, specialist in gynecological oncology National Cancer Institute He added that HPV infection is a type of sexually transmitted disease that can be transmitted on the skin, genitals, mouth and throat. Usually, people who are sexually active can get this virus. However, our immune system is able to eliminate the infection from the body on its own. Only 5-10% of cases are not able to eliminate high-risk HPV strains. Makes the infection last for a long time (persistent HPV) and these infections can cause abnormalities in cells. This eventually leads to transformation into cancer cells. This HPV infection lasts for a long time or Persistent HPV if it is not treated. It is the cause of up to 95% of cervical cancer cases. It takes approximately 15-20 years for the changes after infection to become can cer cells. Infection with high-risk HPV strains is often found in people who have started Had sexual intercourse for the first time under 18 years of age or in people who have changed multiple sexual partners. As for other factors that increase the chance of getting cervical cancer, such as low immunity. and smoking, etc. It is very good that we can definitely know that the main cause of cervical cancer is HPV infection. Therefore, we can find effective ways to prevent cervical cancer. Currently, we divide prevention into 2 Primary prevention includes vaccination to prevent HPV infection and secondary prevention includes regular cervical cancer screening. Vaccination against cervical cancer Or the vaccine to prevent HPV infection can be injected to both women and men starting at age 9 years. The Department of Disease Control recommends vaccination against HPV infection for girls and boys at age 11 years. For those older than that, Never received the vaccine before You can consult a medical professional to g et vaccinated up to the age of 45, but because the vaccine cannot prevent all cervical cancer. Therefore, it is necessary to undergo regular screenings. For cervical cancer screening Currently, things that are widely done around the world, including Thailand, include cervical cell testing (Cytology test) or what we call PAP smear and HPV testing (HPV DNA test) in all eligible Thai women between the ages of 30. -60 years old, can undergo free HPV screening every 5 years or request a HPV self-testing kit at a nearby hospital. This is another option for women who are inconvenient to come for examination at the hospital. Source: Thai News Agency