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PAHO NEWS: Press Releases, Job Vacancies, and Other
Information from the Pan American Health Organization
(PAHO) via the Canadian Society for International Health
(CSIH) http://www.csih.org; Technical Representative in
Canada for PAHO
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$50 Million Gates Grant for Cervical Cancer Prevention
"Gratefully Received"
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Washington, DC, September 22, 1999-A $50 million grant from
the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for a major new effort
to prevent cervical cancer worldwide will be "gratefully
received and faithfully applied," said Dr. George Alleyne,
Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). In a
ceremony at PAHO where the five-year grant to the Alliance
for Cervical Cancer Prevention was announced, Dr. Alleyne
said, "There is no magic bullet for preventing cervical
cancer but with these funds we will put together a package of
activities that can help prevent it, especially among poor
women. Something can be done and something will be done to
make a difference to the lives of the women in the world."
The grant funds will support programs to clarify, promote and
implement strategies for preventing cervical cancer in
developing countries by the Alliance for Cervical Cancer
Prevention, made up of five international organizations: AVSC
International, IARC (International Agency for Research on
Cancer), JHPIEGO Corporation, affiliated with Johns Hopkins
University, PAHO, and PATH (Program for Appropriate
Technology in Health). Together, these organizations work
extensively on various programs of cervical cancer prevention
in geographic locations where cervical cancer is most common.
Cervical cancer kills more than 200,000 women annually
worldwide and disproportionately affects the poorest, most
vulnerable women in many parts of the world. Unlike many
other health problems, early identification and treatment of
precancerous conditions can prevent cervical cancer. As the
leading cancer killer among women in the majority of
developing countries, cervical cancer generally strikes women
in midlife when they have completed their child-bearing and
are playing an increasingly important economic and social
role in their families and communities. In the Americas, some
68,000 new cases of cervical cancer are reported each year,
according to Dr. Sylvia Robles of PAHO's Non-Communicable
Diseases Program, and it is estimated that in Latin America
and the Caribbean 25,000 women die from cervical cancer each
year. "We're very grateful for this grant, which will allow
us to work in advocacy, training, evaluation of safety and
cost effectiveness of screening. We see this as an
opportunity to reach poor middle aged women and prevent
needless deaths," Dr. Robles said. "Overall, while actual
declining trends could be masked by special circumstances in
some countries, cervical cancer mortality has not declined in
Latin America as it has in developed countries. The real
need is for screening of older women who are at substantially
higher risk," she added.
Dr. Jacqueline Sherris of PATH said , "The need for this is
clear." The cancer prevention program, she noted, is a
"unique program opportunity" to carry out activities on a
global scale that will have short and long term impact, while
the partnership among the five groups can amplify progress in
the countries and regions of greatest need. Dr. William R.
Brody, President of Johns Hopkins University, said "I want to
thank Bill Gates Jr. for recognizing a unique opportunity to
improve the health of women worldwide" through this program.
He said that only five percent of women in developing
countries are routinely screened for cervical cancer,
compared with 70 percent in industrialized countries.
The grant was announced at a meeting of the Alliance for
Cervical Cancer Prevention at PAHO Headquarters in
Washington, with representatives from each of the
organizations that form the alliance.
Dr. Rengaswamy Sankaranarayanan of the International Agency
for Research on Cancer said his agency would investigate
different approaches to screening and prevention in India and
other countries, develop software and a global database, and
train people in Africa, Asia and Latin America in diagnosis
and treatment.
Dr. Amy Pollock of AVSC International said "This is a unique
opportunity for us to continue working in the lowest resource
settings testing safety and efficacy of screening methods for
cervical cancer."
The Alliance's five-year plan will assess technologies and
approaches for screening for and treating precancerous
cervical lesions, evaluate the safety and cost effectiveness
of alternative service delivery systems, encourage community
involvement in cervical cancer prevention programs, and
encourage advocacy to heighten awareness of the problem and
institute appropriate prevention strategies. Research and
program projects will be undertaken in India, Mexico, Peru,
Thailand, South Africa, Ecuador, Venezuela and Central
America.
"The Alliance for Cervical Cancer Prevention is grateful for
Bill and Melinda Gates' commitment to improving health of
women worldwide," said the Alliance Steering Committee. "The
Gates' support to ensure that women in developing countries
have equitable access to cervical cancer prevention in their
communities provides an unprecedented opportunity to improve
women's health."
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation places a major focus on
helping to improve people's lives through health and
learning. Led by William H. Gates, Sr. and Patty Stonesifer,
the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is located in Seattle,
Wash. Significant Foundation projects include: the Bill and
Melinda Gates Children's Vaccine Program, a $100 million
commitment to speed the delivery of lifesaving vaccines to
children in developing countries; the Maternal Mortality
Reduction Program, a $50 million commitment to prevent
pregnancy-related deaths of women in developing countries;
and the Gates Library Initiative, a major effort to help
close the "digital divide" by bringing Internet access to
libraries in the poorest communities in Canada and the United
States.
For further information contact: Daniel Epstein, tel (202)
974-3459, fax (202) 974-3143, Office of Public Information,
email [log in to unmask] http://www.paho.org
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PAHO Applauds Clinton Initiative
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Washington, DC (PAHO), September, 21, 1999- The Pan American
Health Organization (PAHO) today applauded President
Clinton's initiative to attack diseases that contribute to
poverty and prevent economic development worldwide.
"We applaud the President's initiative, particularly with
respect to encouraging the production of vaccines for
developing countries," said Dr. Ciro de Quadros, chief of
PAHO's Division of Vaccines and Immunization. "This
initiative will help ensure that we reach the laudable and
important target of eradicating polio from the world, and
find vaccines for other debilitating diseases."
In his address to the United Nations General Assembly today,
President Clinton announced a number of new and on-going
health initiatives, saying. "Today I commit the United States
to a concerted effort to accelerate the development and
delivery of vaccines for malaria, TB, AIDS and other diseases
disproportionately affecting the developing world."
Dr. de Quadros, who led the successful effort to eradicate
polio from the Americas and is now working to eliminate
measles, said "Vaccines are the most cost-efficient health
intervention available. We must do everything possible to
ensure that today's vaccines reach every child in every home,
no matter how poor, and that tomorrow's vaccines are in the
pipeline so we can continue saving lives."
The Pan American Health Organization, which also serves as
the Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health
Organization, works with all the countries of the Americas to
improve the health and raise the living standards of their
peoples.
For further information contact: Daniel Epstein, tel (202)
974-3459, fax (202) 974-3143, Office of Public Information,
email [log in to unmask] http://www.paho.org
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