RCB Partners to Kick Off Operation Wipe Out in Rural Alabama

Dr. Abby Adams, President, Rotary Club of LaFayette; Sarah Bowler, TogetHER for Health; Dr. Isabel Scarinci, Rotary Club of Birmingham/UAB Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology; Dan Stephens, Executive Director, Rotary Club of Birmingham

The Rotary Club of Birmingham is partnering with other regional organizations to kick off Operation Wipe Out, an initiative aimed at raising awareness about HPV and cervical cancer prevention in Alabama. The project will launch in Chambers County, Alabama, an area with a high rate of cervical cancer disease. It is modeled after the successful Cervical Cancer Elimination Project in Sri Lanka with leadership from Rotarian Dr. Isabel Scarinci, UAB O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center Associate Director for Globalization and Cancer Associate Director. Over time, the project plans to expand to additional counties across the state.

The initiative brings together The Rotary Club of Birmingham, The Rotary Club of Lafayette, the University of Alabama at Birmingham Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, Auburn University School of Nursing, TogetHER for Health, Quality of Life Health Services, and the Alabama Department of Public Health to end cervical cancer as a public health problem in Alabama by building awareness of HPV and cervical cancer, engaging communities, and bolstering access to cervical cancer prevention.