Ghana’s Most Beautiful Starts Campaign On Cervical Cancer

Second runner-up of TV3 reality show programme, Ghana’s Most Beautiful, Ms Eno Adwoa, has kicked-started her project of educating young girls on the dangers of cervical cancer at her alma mata, Afia Kobi Apem Girls Senior at Traboum in the Atwima-Kwanwoma District of the Ashanti Region.

The entire students and some teachers of the school last Wednesday converged at their main auditorium and listened with rapt attention as resource persons invited by the beauty queen from the Global Cervical Charity Foundation explained the causes, prevention and treatment of cervical cancer.

Eno’s Aid, a non-governmental organization started by Eno Adwoa also delivered some educational literature to the students that would help them better understand the disease that has also become a killer.

The beauty runner-up in an interview considered her former senior high school as the best place to launch what would be a life-long campaign.

She hopes to reach out to other second cycle institutions- over 100 SHS- in the Ashanti Region in the course of the year. Junior high schools are not left out as plans are in place to take the campaign to students of the JHS.

Eno Adwoa has plans of giving her project a national character after she has exhausted her outreach to schools in the Ashanti Region on whose ticket she made an appearance at Ghana’s Most Beautiful last year.

Lead resource person and founder of Global Cervical Charity Foundation, Dr. (Mrs.) Joana Nyame, explained that cervical cancer is the leading cause of death in the world. Deaths from this disease surpass deaths from malaria, AIDS and tuberculosis combined.

Over 80% of deaths from cervical cancer occur in low and middle income countries where resources available for diagnosis, prevention and treatment are limited or non-existent.

She said over 207 women die yearly in Ghana as a result of cervical cancer which she told the girls is preventable. “It is preventable and therefore needless for people to die” she said.

Dr. (Mrs.) Nyame mentioned early sex, hereditary and insertion of herbs and other dangerous substances in the female genitals as some of the known causes of the disease.

She however added that “early sex is the commonest cause of cervical cancer in Africa and especially Ghana”.

She advised the students to shun early and pre-marital sex and concentrate on their

studies which will prepare them for a better future when they can contribute to the development of the country.

“If you want to become ladies and mothers of the nation, avoid early sex” she said.

Some of the signs and symptoms of cervical cancer were identified as vaginal bleeding soon after sexual intercourse, vaginal bleeding in between menses, offensive vaginal discharge and loss of weight.

A screening exercise was organized soon after the lecture on the disease with over 600 girls being screened by officials of GCCF.