January is cervical cancer awareness month!
Did you know?
Cervical cancer could be the first cancer EVER in the world to be eliminated, if:
9️⃣0️⃣% of girls are vaccinated
7️⃣0️⃣% of women are screened
9️⃣0️⃣% of women with cervical cancer receive treatment#EndCervicalCancer pic.twitter.com/csvaPJq771— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) January 1, 2026
A woman dies from cervical cancer every two minutes, according to the United Nations. In 2022 alone, an estimated 660,000 women were diagnosed with the disease globally, and about 350,000 died from it. Jeanette, who was diagnosed at age 31, described feeling “betrayed by my body” in an interview with the World Health Organization (WHO) before her death a year later.
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women and is almost always linked to infection with human papillomavirus (HPV), a common sexually transmitted virus. Although most HPV infections clear naturally, persistent infection with high-risk strains can lead to cancer.
The illness is both preventable and curable through vaccination, screening and early treatment. WHO recommends HPV vaccination for all girls aged 9–14 and regular screening from age 30. However, unequal access to these measures has led to higher incidence and mortality in regions such as sub‑Saharan Africa, Central America and Southeast Asia.
In response, 194 countries launched a global elimination strategy in 2020, with targets for 2030 including vaccinating 90% of girls by age 15, screening 70% of women by ages 35 and 45, and ensuring 70% of those diagnosed receive treatment. WHO estimates that meeting these goals could avert 74 million new cases and prevent 62 million deaths by 2120.