Rwanda has made significant progress toward eliminating cervical cancer by 2027, official data released on Tuesday showed.

Data from the Rwanda Biomedical Center (RBC), presented at a national cancer symposium in the capital Kigali, indicated that human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination coverage among girls by age 15 has reached 90 per cent.

Screening coverage for women aged 30 to 49 stood at 31 per cent, below the national target of 70 per cent, while treatment coverage had reached 81 per cent against a 90 per cent goal, the data showed.

Speaking at the symposium, RBC Director-General, Claude Muvunyi, reaffirmed Rwanda’s commitment to a future free from preventable cancer deaths, with a strong focus on cervical cancer elimination.

He said that eliminating cervical cancer in Rwanda was not only a public health priority, but also a matter of equity, of defending women’s rights, and of securing the health of future generations.

Rwanda aims to eliminate cervical cancer by 2027, three years ahead of the World Health Organisation’s global target of 2030.

The symposium was convened to discuss strategies to accelerate cervical cancer elimination and to address cervical and breast cancers as the leading causes of cancer-related deaths in the country.

To achieve the set targets, the RBC called for collective action, urging health workers to sustain high-quality, people-centered prevention, screening, treatment, and follow-up care, while encouraging communities to seek early screening, follow medical guidance, and complete treatment. 

(Xinhua/NAN)