Epidemiology of Cervical Cancer in the Caribbean

Abstract

Cervical cancer (CvC) is considered a preventable disease; however, in the Caribbean, it is still one of the fourth most common causes of death in women. Efforts to overcome obstacles to the treatment and control of this preventable disease are being made by several countries within the Caribbean. However, no health issue can be readily managed without first acquiring an understanding of the dynamics relating to its severity of impact reaching the target population, its clinical pathology, and the availability of treatment and/or preventative measures to control or halt its progression. To assess the status of CvC in the Caribbean, a review of the literature was conducted using PubMed. The Caribbean was defined in the review as comprising nations and islands whose coastlines are touched by the Caribbean Sea. This led to an assessment of the available literature on CvC for 33 Caribbean territories. The review showed a lack of published information on CvC and highlights the need for greater research. This also serves as a template for subsequent investigations.

Investigating under-reported human papillomavirus genotypes in Grenadian women through self-sampling for cervical cancer screening

“…The bivalent, quadrivalent, and 9-valent vaccines all prevent high-risk HPV 16 and 18, which were detected in 8 of 29 (28%) high-risk HPV-positive women in our study. Oncogenic HPV genotypes in Grenada that were uncommon in other Caribbean islands were HPV 53, our most frequent genotype, identified only in Cuba; HPV 56, noted by Scott-Williams et al ( 2 ) but not in our review of HPV in the Caribbean; and HPV 82, not previously reported. In Grenada, oncogenic genotypes HPV 35, 56, 69, 82 and probable oncogenic HPV 53 and 68 are not prevented by any current HPV vaccine.…”

“…Caribbean countries have reported high-risk HPV genotypes that deviate from the HPV 16/18 predominance. A systematic review of the literature by Scott-Williams et al ( 2 ) on cervical cancer in the Caribbean from 1958 to 2022 states that “An exceptionally wide variation of HPV types exists within the Caribbean: HPV-16, 18, 33, 35, 42, 44, 45, 51, 52, 53, 55, 56, 58, 59, 66, 68, and 70.” This review notes the need for more research on cervical cancer in the Caribbean ( 2 ). Cancer in women is dominated by breast cancer in 159 countries and cervical cancer in 23 countries, with cervical cancer being the leading cause of death in 36 countries.…”