Identification and uptake of cervical cancer screening during active surveillance in HIV-positive women attending a primary health care facility in Tshwane District, South Africa

Abstract

Cervical cancer constitutes 20 - 25% of cancers in women in Sub-Saharan Africa. It is a preventable disease, subject to adequate screening, management and follow up. Nevertheless, more than half a million women worldwide develop invasive cervical cancer annually, with middle-and low-income countries achieving only 19% of successful screening coverage compared with high-income countries (63%). The age-standardised incidence rate for cervical cancer in South Africa is 24.71 per 100 000 women.