Cervical cancer in Pakistan: A review

Cervix carcinoma is the second commonest condition in women under 50 years of age and third after breast and oral cavity cancers across all age groups. Though a preventable disease, the mortality rate is very high because it is an ignored ailment in Pakistan in terms of screening, prevention and vaccination. More than 70% of cancer patients report with very advanced stage of malignancy and this is the cause of the high rate of mortality in Pakistan. We covered studies cited during the previous 11 years (2005-2015) that reviewed many aspects of cervical cancer in Pakistan, including epidemiology, risk factors, screening test and their barriers, clinical presentation and prevention. Our analysis indicated that infections associated with human papillomavirus posed the greatest risk of carcinoma and consequent mortality rate, especially because of low socioeconomic status and poor knowledge of screening. Emphasis is laid on a need to organise proper screening programme taking into account what already is known about Pakistani women.