Abstract:
All over the world, cancer is a major public health burden. 19.3 million was the estimated number
of new cases of cancer and nearly 10 million deaths from cancer globally [1,2]. Cancer burden is
apparent all over the world; however, the low middle income countries (LMICs) have an upward
prevalence in the number of new cases and deaths from cancer for example the Sub Saharan
countries[3]. The occurrence of cancer is characterized by unregulated proliferation of cells after
the failure of the mechanisms that regulate normal cell growth in so doing invading and destroying
the tissues and organs that are adjacent then dissemination to the other parts of the body[4]. World
Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have
enumerated obesity, alcohol consumption, family history of cancer, Human Papilloma Viruses
(HPV), Human Immunodeficiency Virus/ Acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDs),
lifestyle and tobacco smoking have been linked as the major risk factors for cancer[5,6]. Among
the leading cancers that have been implicated to have a high morbidity and mortality worldwide
in women of all ages are cancer of the breast, cancer of the lung and cancer of the cervix[7].
Inadequate primary health care, compromised screening procedures, delayed histology results,
little or no resources, follow up hitches, lack of awareness and limited treatment opportunities have
marred the diagnosis and detection of cancer in the developing countries hence the cancer is
discovered late and at an advanced stage[8,9]. Ineffective implementation of policies for control of
cancer, overwhelmed health demands and poor monitoring through population registries is a great
contributor to the long term problem of cancer of the cervix facing sub-Saharan Africa(SSA)[10-
12]. This has been the typical picture in most of these developing regions[13]. In contrast, the
incidence and mortality from cervical cancer have decreased in developed countries, attributable
to organized and consistent cervical screening programs rather than opportunistic screening
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programs and HPV vaccination [2], well-structured national health care systems, affordable high
quality cancer treatment for all and prioritized health care spending hence the low mortality to
incidence ratios[14].