IARC and partners awarded grant to improve cervical cancer prevention in conflict zones

Researchers from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and partner institutions have been awarded a grant under the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC)-led Reimagining Cancer Research in Europe initiative. The objective of the awarded project is to evaluate the feasibility of a new approach to vaccinating and screening women for human papillomavirus (HPV) in conflict zones. HPV is the principal cause of cervical cancer, and more than 600 000 women worldwide are diagnosed with this disease per year.

The project, An Implementation Research Study to Evaluate the HPV-FASTER approach for HPV vaccination combined with HPV screening Among Women with Missed Opportunities in Conflict-affected Ukraine (HPV-FASTER Ukraine), is a collaboration between IARC, World Against Cancer (Ukraine), and King’s College London (United Kingdom).

This project will evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of the HPV-FASTER approach in the conflict-affected Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, combining HPV self-sampling, HPV vaccination for HPV-negative women, and counselling mothers to promote vaccination of their adolescent daughters in the national vaccination programme. The project aims to increase uptake and completion of cervical cancer prevention services and generate evidence to support scale-up in fragile settings.

This collaboration is designed to generate transferable implementation insights relevant to other European countries facing health system disruptions, population displacement, and inequities in access to cervical cancer prevention services.

Read more about the award

View the HPV-FASTER website