Operational considerations for increasing access to cervical cancer screening and treatment for women living with HIV

Overview

This report summarizes the discussions and lessons learned from a WHO think tank meeting on the Operational considerations for increasing access to cervical cancer screening and treatment for women living with HIV. Women living with HIV have a 6-fold increased risk of developing cervical cancer compared to women without HIV. 

In
2021 WHO published the second edition of guidelines for screening and
treatment of cervical pre-cancer lesions for cervical cancer prevention,
including 16 new recommendations and good practice statements for women
living with HIV. However, the implementation of the recommendations has
been challenging in some settings. The objectives of the meeting were
to: (i) describe current models of service delivery for cervical cancer
screening and treatment for women living with HIV, including
interventions to increase cervical cancer screening and treatment uptake
and follow-up; (ii) discuss opportunities and challenges associated
with those models; and (iii) identify persistent knowledge gaps in the
implementation of screening and treatment services among women living
with HIV. 

This
report describes the meeting discussions on these topics, and examples
from countries on their movement towards integrated healthcare
approaches to service delivery that can increase coverage of cervical
cancer screening and treatment among women living with HIV. Women with a
lived experience of HIV and cervical cancer championed the need for an
accelerated expansion of services and for building awareness and
advocacy.