… But gaps remain, study finds
A new study using nationally representative data from Lesotho has found a high prevalence of cervical cancer screening among women living with HIV, though significant disparities linked to age, location, and reproductive history persist.
Published in Scientific Reports, the research analysed 2023/24 Demographic and Health Survey data from 611 HIV-positive women aged 25 and older.
Titled Determinants of cervical cancer screening among women living with HIV in Lesotho using national representative 2023/24 DHS data, the study revealed that 85.4 percent of these women reported ever being screened for cervical cancer. Among those screened, the vast majority (95.63 percent) received normal results.
“The relatively high screening coverage in Lesotho may reflect the integration of cervical cancer screening into HIV care services and the support of donor-funded programs that promote routine screening among women living with HIV,” the authors noted in the study.
However, the analysis identified key factors influencing who gets screened.
Women aged 40-44 were over four times more likely to be screened than the youngest group (25-29 years). Perhaps most strikingly, women who had undergone a clinical breast examination were more than five times as likely to have also received cervical cancer screening.
“This association indicates that women who use other preventive health services, such as breast examinations, tend to undergo cervical cancer screening,” the study states, highlighting a “powerful implication for integrated care policy.”
Conversely, the study found that women living in rural areas were only half as likely to be screened as their urban counterparts. Additionally, women with low parity (1-2 children) were significantly less likely to be screened than women with no children.
“Strengthening integrated, equitable, and context-specific screening strategies within HIV care services may contribute to further improving coverage and reducing cervical cancer-related morbidity and mortality in this high-risk population,” the authors concluded.
The research team recommended several actions to address the gaps, including integrating breast and cervical cancer screening services, enhancing rural outreach programs, and providing targeted health education for women with fewer children.
Summary
- A new study using nationally representative data from Lesotho has found a high prevalence of cervical cancer screening among women living with HIV, though significant disparities linked to age, location, and reproductive history persist.
- “The relatively high screening coverage in Lesotho may reflect the integration of cervical cancer screening into HIV care services and the support of donor-funded programs that promote routine screening among women living with HIV,” the authors noted in the study.
- “This association indicates that women who use other preventive health services, such as breast examinations, tend to undergo cervical cancer screening,” the study states, highlighting a “powerful implication for integrated care policy.
Ntsoaki Motaung is an award-winning health journalist from Lesotho, specializing in community health stories with a focus on sexual and reproductive health and rights, as well as HIV. She has contributed to platforms like “Be in the KNOW,” highlighting issues such as the exclusion of people with disabilities from HIV prevention efforts in Lesotho.
In addition to her journalism, Ntsoaki serves as the Country Coordinator for the Regional Media Action Plan Support Network (REMAPSEN). She is also a 2023 CPHIA Journalism Fellow.
