On 4 March 2022, International Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Day, the Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA) supports the International Papillomavirus Society’s (IPVS) #OneLessWorry campaign, that aims to raise awareness of the virus, and the tools to overcome it, such as screening and vaccination programmes. HPV can cause cancer and is responsible for almost half a million deaths globally each year. #OneLessWorry #HPV #EliminateCervicalCancer #CANSACervicalCancerAwareness Find out more: https://cansa.org.za/cervical-cancer/

1. HPV is a virus that we
have the knowledge
and tools to beat!
HPV and
CERVICAL
CANCER
www.cansa.org.za
Toll free 0800 22 66 22
072 197 9305
071 867 3530
English, Afrikaans
isiXhosa, isiZulu
siSwati, Sesotho, Setswana

2. CANSA’s Main Health Campaigns
CANSA is continuing work on two large
campaigns:
Cervical Cancer and Colorectal Cancer
• CANSA launched its Cervical Cancer
Awareness and Support Campaign on
International Human Papillomavirus
(HPV) Day on 4 March 2021
https://cansa.org.za/cervical-cancer/
• CANSA also launched its Colorectal
Awareness and Support Programme on
World Health Day, 7 April 2021
https://cansa.org.za/colorectal-cancer/

3. CANSA & Department of Basic Education (DoBE)
We would like to take hands with the
DBoE and focus a portion of our cervical
cancer campaign on educating parents,
educators and learners:
• On the benefits of the HPV vaccine and
reasons why we encourage parents to
give consent for their children to have
it administered
• We need more parents to support the
initiative and be educated so that there
is better uptake of the HPV vaccine

4. WHY CERVICAL CANCER?
 Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women in
South Africa after breast cancer
 Cervical Cancer is the leading cause of cancer related deaths
 This should not occur where vaccination against the Human Papilloma
Virus usually called HPV (through the HPV School Vaccination
Programme) is in place in South Africa. Unlike many other cancers,
cervical cancer is mostly preventable.
 Over half of the women diagnosed are between the ages of 35 and 50
 HIV infected women are at an increased risk for HPV infection
 A study recently published in The Lancet medical journal found that
women living with HIV made up an estimated 63.4% of new cervical
cancer cases in SA in 2018 – a dramatically higher percentage than
the global level of around 6%

5.  CANSA is dedicated to the
World Health Organization
(WHO) Global Strategy to
Accelerate the Elimination of
Cervical Cancer
 Following a Call to Action in
May 2018 from the WHO
Director-General, 194 countries
collectively resolved to end
suffering from a cancer that can
be preventable and curable
WHY CERVICAL CANCER?

6.  Cervical cancer is usually a slow-growing cancer that may not have
immediate symptoms
 It can be found with regular Pap smear tests (a procedure in which
cells are scraped from the cervix and looked at under a microscope)
 It is important for women to get regular Pap smears done (The
National Department of Health’s Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control Policy
allows for women aged 30 years and older to have three Pap smears in their
lifetime at 30, 40 and 50 at public health clinics at no cost (non-symptomatic)
 Most women who are diagnosed with cervical cancer today have
not had regular Pap smears or they have not followed up on
abnormal Pap smear results
 Patients usually start experiencing problems when the cancer is
already advanced and has spread (to the bladder, intestines, lungs,
and liver)
CERVICAL CANCER

7. Let’s #EliminateCervicalCancer
It takes people like
me and you. It takes
everyone to beat
HPV, the virus that
causes cancer.
HPV is a virus that
we have the
knowledge and
tools to beat!

8. WHAT IS HPV?
 HPV stands for Human PapillomaVirus and is a very common virus.
There are more than 100 strains of the virus, most of them do not
cause cancer
 About 7 in every 10 people will have HPV infection at some point in
their lifetime
 The virus lives on your skin and can be transmitted through skin-to-
skin or sexual contact. Because HPV lives on your skin, condoms do
not fully protect you from it
 Over 100 types of HPV have been identified, and more than 30 of
these infect the genital mucosa, 15 of which are cancer causing.
HPV 16 and HPV 18 are the highest-risk types known to cause about
70% of all cervical cancers

9. WHAT IS HPV?
 Other strains of HPV are known as high risk. In women, these strains
can cause cancers of the cervix, vagina, vulva, and anus, as well as
head and neck cancers
 About 70% of cervical cancers are caused by HPV
 In men, high risk strains of HPV can cause penile, anal and head and
neck cancers
 The HPV vaccination protects
girls from being infected by HPV
and thus reduces the risk of
developing HPV related
cervical cancer later in life

10. How to Prevent HPV
 Get vaccinated for HPV - The US Center for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) recommended the vaccine for all men and women up to age 26
 Using condoms correctly every time you have sex can help reduce the risk of
HPV, however, condoms do not cover all of the genital skin, so they are not
100% effective in protecting against the spread of HPV
 Genital warts in females need treatment because they
can lead to cervical cancer
 A person with genital warts should not have sex until the
warts are removed. This might help reduce the risk of
spreading HPV
 Most people with HPV do not know they’re infected and
never develop symptoms or health problems from it

11. MYTHS and
FACTS
about HPV
and the
VACCINE
MYTHS
FACTS
HPV isn’t
common &
only affects
women
It affects 80%
of both men &
women
There are
treatments for
HPV
There’s no
cure but there
are ways to treat
precancerous
lesions
It causes
teens to be
sexually
active
No research
links HPV vacc
to increase in
sexual activity
Vaccine
may cause
medical side
effects
The HPV
vaccine is a
safe drug

12. Only women
can get HPV
The vaccine
does not
affect a
foetus
You must
have sexual
intercourse to
get HPV
HPV is spread
by intimate
skin-to-skin
contact
An HPV
infection means
someone wasn’t
faithful
It may remain
dormant & cause
zero symptoms for
weeks/months,
even years
HPV
interferes
with
pregnancy
In majority of
cases, having
HPV doesn’t
impact a woman’s
ability to become
pregnant
Becoming
pregnant after
receiving HPV
vaccine isn’t
safe
MYTHS and
FACTS
about HPV
and the
VACCINE
FACTS
MYTHS

13. The vaccine is given free of charge
every year to girls between
Grade 4 and 7 (9 to 12 years
of age) in all government
schools.
HPV Vaccination at
Schools
Programme
The Integrated School Health Programme,
through the joint efforts with the
Departments of Health, Basic Education
and Social Development have a HPV
(Human Papilloma Virus), vaccination
programme running in South Africa.

14. Awareness of HPV vaccination
among healthcare providers,
education of parents, teachers
and learners, and avoidance of
missed opportunities for
vaccination are vital to the
success of the programme.*
HPV Vaccination at
Schools Programme
*Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination of
adolescents in the South African private health
sector: Lessons from the HPV demonstration
project in KwaZulu-Natal. N Tathiah,
M Naidoo, I Moodley.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26937512/

15. THANK YOU
Parents/guardians are encouraged to
contact CANSA should they require
additional information about HPV
vaccination and cervical cancer by visiting
the CANSA Website at www.cansa.org.za
or phoning CANSA on the toll-free
telephone line 0800 22 66 22

16. DISCLAIMER
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