New weapons in the fight against cervical cancer 26 November
2012 Vinegar, liquid nitrogen and mobile phones are among the
weapons being used by medical researchers in the fight against
cervical cancer in India. Cervical cancer is one of the most
preventable forms of cancer, but limited medical services in
rural regions of India and the social stigma attached to cancer
- which prevents women seeking help - contribute to high
mortality rates. Of the 34,000 Indian women who died from
cervical cancer in 2010, most were in their late thirties and
early forties and most were in rural areas. With support from
AusAID, Associate Professor Lyndal Trevena from Sydney's School
of Public Health has launched a program offering simple but
effective low-tech screening, and providing instant information
about cervical cancer for mobile phone users. She has
collaborated with the Christian Medical College in Vellore,
Weill Cornell Medical College in the USA and Cancer Council
Australia to implement a screening program which pa