Tanzania Youth Alliance
We are breaking down barriers to cervical cancer screening and treatment.
Need
Cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death in Tanzania, with 80 percent of patients diagnosed with the disease dying within five years. The high mortality rate is due primarily to late diagnosis at an advanced stage with limited access to treatment. The danger is even greater in women with HIV. In Tanzania, women with cervical cancer are twice as likely to be HIV-infected, and HIV-positive women develop cervical cancer 10 years earlier than women who are HIV-negative. Major barriers to cancer screening and treatment in the region include social norms and stigma, a lack of awareness, and the high cost of transportation to care facilities.
Project
Tanzania Youth Alliance (TAYOA), in collaboration with the Medical Women Association of Tanzania, set out to address those barriers. They utilized a combination of approaches including: establishing helpline services, mobile banking, public information, financial support for transportation to health care, and a network of Community Popular Opinion Leaders linked to health centers and women’s groups.
The program targeted 6,000 women aged 20-50 for cervical cancer screening who live in the Ilemela, Kwinba, Magu, Sengerema and Ukerewe districts in Mwanza. It is estimated that 300 will be referred to treatment. This program will additionally strengthen the national cervical cancer helpline and SMS short message services provided by the government, currently managed by TAYOA. The organization also collaborated with Airtel Tanzania to sponsor media campaigns with the goal of raising awareness about cervical cancer screening and early detection.
Partners
- Medical Women Association of Tanzania
- Airtel Tanzania
- Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon
- Tanzania Marketing and Communications (T-MARC)