Cervical cancer threatens HIV-positive women
The audio is in isiZulu. See the English summary below.
MABUTHO: Umdlavuza wesibeletho udalwa igciwane elaziwa ngele Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). Leligciwane ngokujwayelekile litholakala ngokuthintana kanjalo nangokuya ocansini. UProfessor Lynne Denny usebenza emnyangweni ophathelene nezifo zabantu besifazane enyuvesi yase Cape Town. Uthi ucwaningo lwakhe lweminyaka emihlanu lubonisa ukuthi sikhulu kakhulu isibalo sabantu besifazane abanegciwane le HIV abasemathubeni okuphathwa ileligciwane elidala umdlavuza wesibeletho, iHuman Papilloma Virus. Uthi okubi kakhulu ukuthi igciwane, iHPV, liba namandla kakhulu kulabo baphila negciwane le HIV.
PROF. LYNNE DENNY: Human Papilloma Virus infection is very common in HIV-positive people. ‘¦ And I have done studies. I have got a cohort of 400 HIV-positive women that I have been tracking every six months for the last five years. And we’ve shown that up to 80% or even 90% will develop HPV infection… And the majority of those infections among HIV-positive women are persistent. And it’s persistent infection that causes cancer.
MABUTHO: Igciwane iHuman Papilloma Virus lingahlala iminyaka engamashumi amabili nangaphezulu emzimbeni womuntu ngaphambi kokuba lidale umdlavuza wesibeletho. UProf. Denny uthi okwamanje kulelizwekazi laseAfrica basebancane kakhulu abantu besifazane abanegciwane le HIV ababulawa umdlavuza wesibeletho. Uthi isizathu salokhu ukuthi kuleminyaka embalwa edlulile iningi labesifazane abanegciwane le HIV bebesheshe bafe bebulawa izifo ezifana ne TB, pneumonia kanye nezinye izifo. Uthi njengoba sekunamakhambi alwisana negciwane le HIV enza abantu baphile isikhathi eside, kulapho ke sekuzovela khona izibalo zabantu besifazane abaphathwa umdlavuza wesibeletho.
PROF. LYNNE DENNY: We, in Africa, have not seen an increase of cervical cancer in HIV-positive women yet. Why? Because they all died of other diseases before they got cervical cancer. They died of meningitis, TB and other diseases. Now that women are on antiretroviral therapy, and they are starting to live longer, we are going to see this marked increase in cervical cancer.
MABUTHO: Khonamanjalo no Martha Molete wenhlangano yabantu abaphila nomdlavuza iCancer Association of South Africa (CANSA) uyafakaza ukuthi ngempela abesifazane abaphila negciwane le HIV basemathubeni amaningi okuphathwa umdlavuza wesibeletho uma ngabe bengenwa igciwane iHuman Papilloma Virus.
MARTHA MOLETE: Research has shown that there is a link between HIV/AIDS and cervical cancer because cervical cancer is infection-related. Research shows that if you are HIV-positive or you have full blown AIDS, you are much more likely to develop cervical cancer if you have been infected with Human Papilloma Virus.
MABUTHO: UProf. Denny uthi ukuze kulwiswane nalenkinga kuzobaluleka ukuthi abesifazane abanegciwane le HIV bagonyelwe umdlavuza wesibeletho. Uthi lokhu kungabakuhle ikakhulukazi uma kuzophinde kugonywe nabantwana abathola igciwane iHPV kubazali babo.
PROF.LYNNE DENNY: I think it’s going to be very important to vaccinate HIV-positive people. And particularly kids who acquire it through maternal to child transmission prior to their own sexual exposure.
MABUTHO: Nokho okuhlalukayo ukuthi ukugomela igciwane iHPV elidala umdlavuza wesibeletho kuyinto ebiza kakhulu. Womabili amakhambi okugomela okanye ukuvikela leligciwane asanda kubhaliswa ngokusemthethweni iMedicines Control Council, iGardasil ekhiqizwa inkampani iMeck, Sharp and Dohme (MSD) kanye ne Cervarix yenkampani iGlaxo-Smith-Kline abiza ngaphezulu kuka R2000.00. Lokho kwenza ukuthi abantu abaningi, ikakhulukazi labo abahluphekayo, bangakwazi ukuthi bawathole.
See the English summary below.
Cervical cancer threatens HIV-positive women
Health experts have warned of a possible increase of cervical cancer among HIV-positive women if nothing is done to prevent the Human Papilloma Virus, which causes this form of cancer.
‘Human Papilloma Virus infection is very common in HIV-positive people’¦ And I have done studies. I have got a cohort of 400 HIV-positive women that I have been tracking every six months for the last five years. And we’ve shown that up to 80% or even 90% will develop HPV infection… And the majority of those infections among HIV-positive women are persistent. And it’s persistent infection that causes cancer,’ said Professor Lynne Denny from the Department of Glynaecology at the University of Cape Town.
She forecasts that African countries will experience an increase of cervical cancer cases among HIV-positive women in the near future if nothing is done to prevent it.
‘We, in Africa, have not seen an increase of cervical cancer in HIV-positive women yet. Why? Because they all died of other diseases before they got cervical cancer. They died of meningitis, TB and other diseases. Now that women are on antiretroviral therapy, and they are starting to live longer, we are going to see this marked increase in cervical cancer,’ she warned.
Martha Molete, spokesperson for the Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA), also agrees that there is a link between cervical cancer and HIV.
‘Research has shown that there is a link between HIV/AIDS and cervical cancer because cervical cancer is infection-related. Research shows that if you are HIV-positive or you have full-blown AIDS, you are much more likely to develop cervical cancer if you have been infected with Human Papilloma Virus,’ she said.
According to Prof. Denny the solution to the problem lies in vaccination.
‘I think it’s going to be very important to vaccinate HIV-positive people. And, particularly, kids who acquire it through maternal-to-child transmission prior to their own sexual exposure,’ she said.
However, if prices of cervical cancer vaccines are anything to go by, there is little chance that vaccination on a massive public scale can start any time soon. The two newly-registered cervical cancer vaccines, Gardasil by Meck, Sharp and Dohme (MSD) and Cervarix by Glaxo-Smith-Kline cost more than R2000.00 each, making them inaccessible to the majority of poor women.
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