High rate of cervical cancer reported

Routine checks conducted at Ghana's biggest teaching hospital in recent years show that cervical cancer is the commonest of all cancers recorded, the Ghana News Agency quoted health officials as saying on Monday.

The agency said 481 cases of cervical cancer were recorded at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital out of 1,661 patients screened at the hospital's radiotherapy unit between October 1997 and December 2000. This prompted the inauguration on Monday of the Cervical Cancer Advisory Group by Dr Emmanuel Mensah, director of the Ghana Health Service.

Mensah urged women over 35 years to make sure they underwent screening for cervical cancer at least once every three years and said the country's Ministry of Health planned to provide the facilities and counselling to encourage as many women as possible to undergo regular checks.

"The Ministry is giving serious encouragement for the investigation of herbal medicines that show promising results in the treatment of cervical cancer and other reproductive tract infections," he said.

The cancer, which accounts for 200,000 deaths worldwide every year, is caused by a sexually transmitted virus. Over 300,000 cases are reported each year, mostly in developing countries.