RCB Delegation Attends Cervical Cancer Conference in Guatemala

RCB leaders with cervical cancer elimination partners in Guatemala

A delegation of Rotary Club of Birmingham (RCB) leaders recently traveled to Guatemala to represent RCB at a cervical cancer conference, including President Bruce Rogers, current and past VPs of International Service Mike Saag and Allen Kilgore, and Isabel Scarinci, who leads the club’s efforts to eliminate cervical cancer as a health risk in Alabama. The team toured facilities, met with leaders of the Guatemala Sur Rotary Club and other regional stakeholders, provided expertise based on successful programs in Sri Lanka and rural Alabama, and discussed plans to eradicate the preventable disease in the country on par with past efforts to combat polio.

Cervical Cancer, a disease caused by infection with human papilloma virus, is the number one cause of cancer death among women in Guatemala. In full partnership with the Guatemala Sur Rotary Club, the program has been planned and is beginning to be executed. Efforts are beginning in San Juan Zacatepequez with education and vaccination in collaboration with the Guatemala Ministry of Health. The strength of Rotary is logistics, provision of educational materials, and our ability to provide evidence-based strategies to promote HPV vaccination and make it culturally relevant, with a special focus on the local culture and infrastructure.

The country provides single-dose vaccination to children (girls and boys) aged 9 thru 17 on an ‘opt-in’ basis, meaning the parents must approve the administration of the vaccine to their children at school. The vaccine is > 88% effective in preventing HPV infection; currently < 5% of children in Guatemala have received the vaccine. Cultural barriers include anti-vaccine sentiment along with disproven concerns that the vaccine causes infertility and will promote sexual promiscuity. RCB’s mission with this project is to educate parents on the facts and myths, the lack of meaningful toxicities, the efficacy of HPV vaccination, and the promise of elimination of Cervical Cancer in the country. Vaccination can also prevent other HPV-related diseases, including anal cancer, genital warts, and throat cancer.

We are fortunate to have established a collaboration with Dr. Saskia Rodas, a physician / epidemiologist at the Universidad Francisco Marroquín, the most respected University in country. She also is the wife of the immediate past-president of the Guatemala Sur Rotary Club, Andres Rodas, who is leading the effort within their Rotary Club. Saskia is tracking the rates of vaccination throughout the country, including those sites we have initiated the project, and is tracking long-term Cervical Cancer incidence in conjunction with the Ministry of Health, which allows us to track the impact and effectiveness of our initiative over the next several decades. Our plan is to start in regions covered by the Guatemala Sur Rotary and then expand into the rest of country in collaboration with the 21-plus other Rotary Clubs throughout Guatemala. We estimate the entire project will take about 5 years and will ultimately be self-sustaining through collaborations with the Ministry of Health.

“Our hope is that, through this initiative, we will help create a program that will eliminate Cervical Cancer in Guatemala, similar to how the country eliminated polio years ago,” said Dr. Saag.