IPVS President meets with the team of the PATH Scale-Up project that is assisting four countries in Central America and three African countries to introduce HPV testing.

The Scale-Up team featuring the first lady of Guatemala, Patricia Marroquín, and IPVS President, Silvia de Sanjosé.

The Scale-Up project seeks to reduce cervical cancer incidence through improved and expanded screening using HPV testing. This will be achieved through three primary actions:

1. Adoption of HPV DNA testing as the primary screening mechanism for detecting cervical precancer and cancer in Central American countries.
2. Establishment of a regional procurement system to secure access to diagnostics in Latin America, including HPV DNA testing.
3. Assessment of opportunities for introduction of HPV DNA testing in three African countries and development of introduction strategies, where feasible.

As a direct result of this project, hundreds of thousands of women in Central America will be screened and treated during the project period, greatly reducing their risk of developing invasive cervical cancer. In addition, guidelines, skills, and strategies will be put in place to continue and to expand screening and treatment services to millions of women in subsequent years.

A regional procurement mechanism will enable countries in Latin America to purchase HPV DNA tests at affordable prices; PATH is working in close collaboration with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to achieve this.