By Ankeli Emmanuel, Sokoto
The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) in collaboration with Sokoto State ministry of health with support from the Canadian Government Tuesday organized a day stakeholders meeting on improving uptake of Human Pappiloma Vaccine (HPV) for girls between the ages of 9 and 14 in the state.
Addressing participants at the meeting in Sokoto Guest Inn, UNICEF Sokoto Field Office Health Specialists for Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent, Dr Danjuma Nehemiah said cervical cancer is a very dangerous disease hence the need for sensitisation on vaccine acceptance.
“These vaccines is for the prevention of cervical cancer. And it is targeting children from 9 to 14 years”
On why the age group was selected, Dr Danjuma said, “this target is strategic, looking at the fact that one of the contributing factors for the development of cervical cancer is early sexual activity. So this group of 9 to 14 years are being targeted here in Sokoto so that they can have these vaccines and they can be prevented from developing cervical cancer later in life”.
As for the efficacy of the cervical cancer vaccine, Dr Danjuma said it is safe, efficacious, and proven to be preventing the development of carvical cancer outside the country for a very long time now but introduced to Nigeria some two to three years ago.
He also affirmed that since the introduction of the vaccine in Nigeria, it has been widely available in all the states at no cost.
Lending his voice to the development, Dr Bilyaminu Yari Sifawa, the Director, Disease Control and Immunization, Sokoto State, Primary Healthcare, Development Agency (SSPHCDA) said the HPV vaccine was introduced into routine immunization considering the fact cervical cancer is ratee second largest disease killing adolescent girls in Nigeria.
“The breast cancer is number one, then the human papillomavirus, which is HPV, is number two leading causes of death in Nigeria”, Dr Bilyaminu noted.
