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Background The objective of this study was to explore women’s experiences of a screen-and-treat approach with ablative therapy (referred to by the Spanish acronym TVT-TA) as a method of treatment following a positive HPV test in Iquitos, Peru. Methods A total of 111 in-depth interviews were conducted with 47 HPV positive women who attended the TVT-TA procedure at a primary-level healthcare facility. Interviews were conducted immediately before, immediately after, and six-weeks after TVT-TA. Results Most interviewed women reported experiencing moderate pain during ablative therapy and minimal pain immediately after and six weeks after ablative therapy. Women also stated that the pain was less intense than they had expected. The most common physical after-effects of treatment were bleeding and vaginal odor. Women experienced oscillating emotions with fear upon receiving a positive HPV result, calming after hearing about ablative therapy treatment, worry about pain from the treatment itself, relaxation with counseling about the procedure, and relief following treatment. Conclusions Nearly all participants emphasized that they were pleased with the TVT-TA process even if they had experienced pain during TVT-TA, recommended that TVT-TA be expanded and available to more women, and stated that TVT-TA was faster and easier than expected. This study found that TVT-TA is a feasible and acceptable means of treating HPV according to the women receiving the treatment.

Against a backdrop of global equity in cancer prevention and control, the National Institute of Neoplastic Diseases (INEN), a national reference center, has designed and developed innovative strategies and programs with the intent to meet institutional goals through health promotion interventions and cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatments that benefit the national population. The INEN Schools and Centers of Excellence have played an important role in the process of determining the results of these actions. The Center of Excellence in Cervical Cancer Training is an interventional pioneer that has applied a methodological design intended to improve health professional skills and has disseminated this model to other Schools of Excellence. Through this intervention, the skills of 12,194 health professionals trained by the INEN have been strengthened with respect to nationwide promotion and primary and secondary prevention during the period of 2012–2015. En el marco de las acciones globales en la prevención y control del cáncer, el Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Neoplásicas (INEN), centro de referencia nacional, ha diseñado y desarrollado estrategias y programas innovadores que están orientados al cumplimiento de los objetivos institucionales a través de las intervenciones de promoción de la salud, prevención, diagnóstico y tratamiento del cáncer, que benefician a la población a nivel nacional. En el proceso de obtener resultados de estas acciones, las escuelas y centros de excelencia del INEN, han desarrollado un papel muy importante. El Centro de Excelencia en la Capacitación en Cáncer de Cuello Uterino es el pionero en estas intervenciones con diseño metodológico aplicado a la mejora de las competencias de los profesionales de la salud, siendo este modelo diseminado a las otras escuelas de excelencias. Como resultado de su intervención, se han logrado fortalecer las competencias de 12 194 profesionales de la salud, capacitados por el INEN en promoción y prevención primaria y secundaria, a nivel nacional, durante el periodo del 2012-2015.

ObjectiveCervical cancer is a preventable disease which causes significant morbidity and mortality, particularly in developing countries. Although technology for early detection continues to improve, prevention programs suffer from significant barriers. Community-based participatory research is an approach to research which focuses on collaboration with the community to surmount these barriers. The objective of this study was to evaluate the utility of community-based participatory research techniques in a mother-child screen/treat and vaccinate program for cervical cancer prevention in Manchay, Peru.Materials and MethodsHuman papillomavirus (HPV) self-sampling and cryotherapy were used for the screen/treat intervention, and the Gardasil vaccine was used for the vaccine intervention. Community health workers from Manchay participated in a 3-day educational course, designed by the research team. The community health workers then decided how to implement the interventions in their community. The success of the program was measured by (1) the ability of the community health workers to determine an implementation plan, (2) the successful use of research forms provided, (3) participation and retention rates, and (4) satisfaction of the participants.Results(1) The community health workers used a door-to-door approach through which participants were successfully registered and both interventions were successfully carried out; (2) registration forms, consent forms, and result forms were used correctly with minimal error; (3) screen/treat intervention: 97% of registered participants gave an HPV sample, 94% of HPV-positive women were treated, and 90% returned for 6-month follow-up; vaccine intervention: 95% of registered girls received the first vaccine, 97% of those received the second vaccine, and 93% the third; (4) 96% of participants in the screen/treat intervention reported high satisfaction.ConclusionsCommunity-based participatory research techniques successfully helped to implement a screen/treat and vaccinate cervical cancer prevention program in Manchay, Peru. These techniques may help overcome barriers to large-scale preventive health-care interventions.