Protecting Her Health: A Position Paper on Breast and Cervical Cancer

Abstract Breast cancer and cervical cancer are the two most prevalent cancers in women that screening programs can identify early. This study explores the epidemiology and screening of breast cancer, and cervical cancer from an Indian perspective, human papillomavirus (HPV) screening and artificial intelligence (AI) in cervical cancer screening, as discussed in the “Protecting her Health” session of the 6th Amrita International Public Health Conference. The conference was organized by the Department of Community Medicine, Public Health and Oncology, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, Kochi, Kerala, India, in collaboration with iTMO University and the Eurasian Federation of Oncology on December 1, 2023 and December 2, 2023 with the theme “Advancing Public Health Strategies for Cancer Control.” The following conclusions were suggested during discussions under the subtheme “Protecting her Health”: Even though mammography (MAM) is recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) for screening breast cancer, clinical breast examination is a reasonable strategy in low- and middle-income countries with the lack of MAM-based screening. There should be a robust commitment from the Government to implement the WHO’s 90-70-90 elimination strategy into practice to eradicate cervical cancer. Scientific evidence from India reported the effectiveness of screening for cervical cancer through Visual Inspection with Acetic acid or HPV test. Adding HPV vaccination into the immunization program along with the screening activities can eradicate cervical cancer in the long run. With the least infrastructure, AI may be used to screen for cervical cancer in environments with limited resources.