The Fight Against Cervical Cancer During National Women’s Health Month
Cervical cancer (CCA) is one of the most common cancers among women. Despite being easily prevented and highly treatable and curable, it persists as one of the oldest, most stigmatized and deadliest illness among women, worldwide.
Women in the Inland Empire have some of the highest cervical cancer rates in California. It is estimated that 1,495 women will be diagnosed with CCA and 430 women will die of CCA in California by 2011. Recent reports show an increase in CCA cases, illness and deaths among specific communities in California, including the Inland Empire. According to the American Cancer Society, there will be an estimated 860 new cases of cervical cancer and an estimated 150 deaths in the Inland Empire in 2011.
Also African- and Latina- Americans have higher rates and poorer survival. CCA is one of the most preventable cancers since the Papanicolaou (PAP) test can effectively, safely and cost effectively detect cellular changes even before cancer develops.
What is Cervical Cancer?
Cervical cancer is one of the more common cancers of the female reproductive system. Most cervical cancers are linked to infection by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). Cervical cancer may cause vaginal pain and bleeding, however, a woman can have cervical cancer and not know it since there may be no symptoms.
How to prevent cervical cancer:
A PAP test can find abnormal cervical cell changes before they can become cancerous. A PAP test can also show if cervical cancer is present. If cancer is found early, it’s easy to treat and highly curable. A PAP test is a healthy habit for women and a healthy habit for you.
Preventing an HPV infection with a new vaccine called Gardasil is now possible. The vaccine provides protection against the four types of HPV that cause most cervical cancers and genital warts. The HPV vaccine is recommended for 11 and 12 year-old girls, and young women age 13 – 26 who are not yet sexually active. The HPV vaccine is available at your doctor’s office, clinic, and local health department or student health services.
This women’s health information is sponsored by a study at City of Hope National Medical Center. City of Hope is a biomedical research and treatment center dedicated to the prevention, treatment and cure of cancer and other life-threatening diseases.
City of Hope is a Comprehensive Cancer Center, the highest distinction awarded by the National Cancer Institute, signifying the breadth, depth and quality of the institution’s research and clinical care.
City of Hope mailing address: 1500 E. Duarte Road Duarte CA, 91010; 626-256-4673 or visit www.coh.org — Center of Community Alliance for Research and Education (CCARE), 866-704-0474 or 626-256-4673 Ext 63345 Phyllis Clark, CEO, Healthy Heritage Movement, Inc., 3637 9th Street, Riverside, CA 92501 or visit www.healthyheritagemovement.com, 951-288-4375.
Texas Should Cut Planned Parenthood From Women’s Health Program
The Women’s Health Program (WHP), a Medicaid reimbursement program for family planning services, was established by the Texas Legislature as a five-year demonstration project in 2005. The program is set to expire this August unless authorized by new legislation. When the 2005 bill to establish the program originally passed, language was added to restrict the program from abortion providers, but the Health and Human Services Commission was unable to implement the restrictions in the program’s operations due to federal Medicaid rules.
Very recently, Attorney General Greg Abbott released opinions ruling that our state’s Health and Human Services Commission could adopt rules for this program, and more importantly, that adopting rules does not conflict with federal Medicaid rules. Thus, legislators interested in renewing the WHP have incorporated stricter requirements for participation in the WHP, excluding abortion providers from the program while being mindful not to step outside federal Medicaid rules.
By its own admission, Planned Parenthood (PP) serves almost half of the clients enrolled in the WHP, receiving tax dollars through Medicaid reimbursements for each client served. Understandably and predictably, the bills to renew the program would indeed disqualify PP from the participation in the program since Planned Parenthood is America’s largest abortion provider. Planned Parenthood Federation of America just issued a requirement that all clinics affiliated with its brand must now provide abortion or release affiliation with the PP brand name.
The language to restrict abortion providers or agencies that are affiliated with abortion providers from the WHP is now more important than ever.
Like all family planning funds, the WHP has become yet another funding stream for the abortion industry. TRTL’s legislative team has worked closely with members of both the House and the Senate to ensure that the WHP’s reauthorization would exclude the abortion industry and its affiliated clinics.
State Senator Bob Deuell (R-Greenville) redrafted his bill, Senate Bill 1854, to address concerns about the funds to the abortion industry. The new language ensured that Texas women have adequate access to preventative care and family planning services while simultaneously excluding abortion providers and affiliates from participation in the WHP. In fact, Senator Deuell’s new language is so well done that PP now opposes the bill since PP will no longer be eligible for participation in the WHP.
SB 1854 now stipulates if the law is challenged in court and found to be unconstitutional, then the WHP will altogether cease. This provision guarantees that no agency or clinic that provides or refers for abortion or affiliates with such an agency or clinic will receive any tax dollars through the WHP. Texas Right to Life commends Senator Deuell for his leadership on restricting the program to agencies and organizations that provide a full spectrum of health care services and that are not colored by participation in the abortion industry.
Desperate to keep every cent of blood money flowing into their coffers, the abortion giant’s leadership is crying foul. Even Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and daughter of former pro-abortion Texas Governor Ann Richards, came to Texas last week to protest the exclusion of PP from the WHP. Ms. Richards spoke at a sparsely attended gathering of nags on the steps of the Texas Capitol, calling for sympathetic legislators to kill SB 1854. If PP cannot kill SB 1854—in a surprising twist of the WHP drama, PP will pursue litigation.
Ironically, the program needs renewing legislation to continue. PP does not like the renewing legislation because it is excluded. PP will sue, but the language says that the program is cancelled if challenged in court. So, PP is out either way, which is a major victory for life.
Texas Right to Life has identified over 300 health care clinics and agencies that provide a very wide spectrum of services; these are clinics in real need of the funds. A boost from WHP reimbursements could enhance their other services and expand their client base. Contrary to what PP officials chant, SB 1854 will still enable women to be served, but women will be served at hundreds of Federally Qualified Health Centers, Community Health Centers, and county and city health centers around the state that are not involved in the deadly abortion business. HOWEVER, women and teens, regardless of their income level, should not be going to facilities that are also in the abortion business for their reproductive health care.
The state budget allocated $166,030,952 to family planning. Estimates are that PP receives approximately $30 million a year in tax-payer funds in Texas, and its own annual report confirms $363 million received nationwide (on top of the $600+ million from private donations and “services”). An organization that is plagued with failed inspections, maiming women, harboring sexual predators AND with $1 Billion in assets (that’s Billion with a “B!”) should not be given ANY public funds. PP does not need to participate in the WHP!
Maternal deaths still high in Nigeria – Expert •Malaria kills 4,500 pregnant women in Nigeria yearly -Ogun Health Commissioner
A reproductive health expert, Dr Ejike Oji, says maternal mortality rate is still high in Nigeria and requires urgent attention to check the trend.
Oji is the Country Director of IPAS Nigeria, a non-governmental organisation that protects women’s health and advances women’s reproductive rights.
He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt, on Wednesday, that in spite of efforts made by government and stakeholders, maternal mortality rate was still high in Nigeria.
He said that Nigeria was second to India in maternal deaths in the world.
“If you look at the maternal mortality rate, which is an indicator of maternal health in any country, a few years ago, our maternal mortality was one thousand one hundred.
“But the last check has now put it at 545 maternal deaths for every hundred thousands live births.
“But you can see that 545 is still huge, is still very, very high when you compare it to some countries who have maternal mortality of about five, four.
“And that means , it is translating to about fifty something thousand women dying annually in Nigeria.
“That is a lot of women dying. In fact, Nigeria contributes second largest maternal deaths in the world after India.
“And you know, India is 1.2 billion and we are just about 152 million. So, India is 10 times our size and we are second to them in terms of total maternal deaths in the world,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ogun State Commissioner for Health, Dr Isiaq Salako, has disclosed that about 4,500 pregnant women die of malaria in the country annually.
Salako spoke during a symposium to commemorate this year’s World Malaria Day, which took place in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, on Wednesday.
Describing malaria as a major public health problem which ravages Nigeria’s population, the commissioner lamented that the scourge affects the growth and development of the country.
He also estimated that 50 per cent of the population had at least one episode of malaria each year while children below five years of age had two to four attacks of malaria each year.
Malaria, he stressed, remains a great threat to the survival of the young African children, accounting for 30 per cent of all childhood deaths.
The commissioner, who addressed participants at the symposium, stated that the major burden of diseases in the African region, including Nigeria, is attributable to vector-borne diseases.
He said: “The disease malaria is no respecter of age, sex or tribe. People of all ages have regular attacks throughout their lives.
“However, young children and pregnant women are most at risk of severe malaria and death.
‘’Malaria also contributes to other children deaths by affecting immunity to other diseases. Successful malaria control measures could therefore result in a large reduction of deaths more than that due to malaria alone.”
‘’We must all be concerned in malaria in pregnancy, whether we are still within the child-bearing age or not. It is our responsibilities to make sure that we do everything humanly possible to prevent and control the menace of malaria in our society.
‘’For us in Ogun State, we believe that prevention is better than cure. It is not only better to prevent malaria, but it is also cheaper. He urged pregnant women not to hesitate to always go for ante-natal.
According to him, it was estimated that 80 per cent to 90 per cent of global clinical malaria cases (300 million) and malaria-related deaths (one million) occur on the African continent in Nigeria.
He added that about 40 per cent of the population of the world is at risk and about 300 to 500 million cases occur globally every year.