The essence of WACC is embodied in these five missions:
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To inform
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To gather |
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To educate
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To work together |
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To take action! |
With the scientific, technical and logistic support of EUROGIN, WACC will hold regular meetings: the WACC Forums serving as platforms for exchanges of information and experiences on cervical cancer prevention strategies, between those who have direct or indirect contact with patients and the public at large.
The WACC Forums will also present an opportunity to educate public leaders and decision-makers on preventive actions or campaigns undertaken in other countries that may encourage and drive improvements in preventive care in their own regions
By driving improvements in health education, knowledge and informed choices, WACC aims to help to solve the problem of lack of information and understanding about cervical cancer, so women everywhere can take steps to reduce their risk of developing this devastating disease.
Clinical HPV infection and the lesions it generates on the cervix and the lower genital tract have considerable impact, not only medical but also economical, social, psychological and emotional.
Although means of prevention exist, the surveys recently carried out by WACC on a large sample of European women show that they are insufficiently used.
When confronted with an abnormal Pap smear or a positive HPV test, surveys reveal that women are left to face the problem alone. They experience this knowledge with the feeling that cancer is lurking right around the corner. This situation is a source of excessive stress and anxiety, without mentioning the disastrous psychological effects on couples and on quality of life.
All this suffering, sometimes under an additional burden of shame or guilt, shows how much more we must accomplish to improve patient information and education.
More recently, easy access to the Internet and communication campaigns around HPV and its link to cervical cancer have only amplified this phenomenon.
Through our network of national and international organizations working closely together, WACC aims to improve awareness of HPV and cervical diseases, and to make cervical cancer prevention a top priority on women’s and public health agendas.
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