Ireland on target to 'eliminate' cervical cancer by 2040, minister says

James Cox

Ireland is on target to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has said.

The Minister for Health said with sustained effort from all stakeholders, the country can meet the target.

Mr Donnelly's announcement marked Cervical Cancer Elimination Day of Action, a global initiative to eliminate cervical cancer.

Currently, in Ireland, about 300 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer every year, and 90 will die from it.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines elimination of cervical cancer as fewer than 4 cases per 100,000 women.

HPV vaccination rates

The Minister for Health said the goal would be achieved by increasing HPV vaccination rates for girls by age 15 from 80 per cent to the WHO target of 90 per cent by 2030.

Other tagrets include continuing to exceed WHO targets by maintaining cervical screening coverage at or above 73 and continuing to exceed WHO targets by maintaining the number of women receiving treatment within the first year of diagnosis at or above 97 per cent.

Mr Donnelly said babies born today will reach adulthood in an Ireland where we expect to have eliminated cervical cancer.