Control of cervical cancer: Women's options and rights

Abstract

Cervical cancer takes the lives of more than 250 000 women each year globally, particularly in under-resourced areas of low-, middle-, and high-income countries. Options for cancer control and treatment have reached a point that there are interventions for control that could be adopted for virtually every resource and demographic situation. Women die despite the availability of attractive control options, which means that educating policy makers, women's health professionals, as well as women themselves, must become a major focus for ongoing control of this disease. The human right to life, to prevention of suffering, and to education are all key rights linked to improving the control of cervical cancer and saving the lives of women, particularly in resource-poor parts of the world. © 2009 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics.