Global Consortium of Women to End Cervical Cancer

For the first time in our history, the Global Summit of Women is undertaking an effort to help eradicate a cancer. In June 2007, at the Global Summit in Berlin, we launched The Global Consortium of Women to End Cervical Cancer. Together, working with women worldwide, we are doing everything in our power to educate and inform women and girls about how to get the appropriate testing and vaccination to end cervical cancer.

You may be asking why it's important for a Summit on economic issues facing women to focus on cervical cancer. But common sense tells us that when the health of women is imperiled we cannot run corporations, or own small businesses, or even work day to day in many cases. A woman's health is fundamental to her ability to participate in society at all levels and particularly in the economy-a sick woman often cannot control her own economic destiny. The Summit is about helping women reach every economic opportunity available-and so keeping women healthy is a key part of the summit's mission.

As we talk about accelerating women's progress, our strides in that area will certainly improve the lives of future generations. In the same way, the Consortium to End Cervical Cancer is really our chance to leave a lasting legacy for our daughters. Eliminating cervical cancer can be our most significant legacy in improving global women's health in this century.

And it's a chance we must take. This isn't a cancer that discriminates by country-it is found in every city and village in the world. Every year, 500,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and that is a conservative estimate because in many countries women die without the diagnosis. Every year, over 250,000 women die from the disease-which means that nearly 700 women die needlessly each day. In the face of that sobering news, however, there is finally real hope. Cervical cancer is special in two ways: first, it only affects women; and, second, and most importantly, we now have the tools at our hands to eradicate it.

The good news is that testing for the cause of cervical cancer - human papillomavirus (HPV) - and vaccinating against HPV can both detect and prevent cervical disease in girls and young women. Used together, we can now actually stop cervical cancer. We can find out who is at high risk-and monitor and treat them. And among young women, we can actually prevent the virus from ever taking hold, stopping cancer before it starts.

At the moment, most women and girls know little about this. Here is what we can each do.

1. We can educate each other about cervical cancer, the virus that causes it - the human papillomavirus (HPV) - and how to protect themselves through screening and vaccination.
2. We can encourage governments to make affordable, accessible HPV technologies available to all girls and women.
3. We can inform the media so that they help stop cervical cancer by spreading the message that cervical cancer is preventable.

As I'm sure you can tell, I am passionate about this effort. I hope you share my excitement about the powerful opportunity we have to leave an incredible legacy for our daughters: the reassurance that no more women will die of this preventable disease. Please join me in this fight to end cervical cancer.

Warm regards,

Irene Natividad
President
Global Summit of Women