ASCO 2013
Comment on biennial visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA), or vinegar
Prof Krishnansu Sujata Tewari - University of California Irvine, Orange, USA
What are your thoughts on the results of the trial screening women for cervical cancer with acetic acid?
I think those were fascinating results, they are strong results. They were able to decrease the cervical cancer mortality rate by 33% which is incredible. I think in resource poor settings this would be fairly easy to adopt with proper training of the healthcare workers and I think it’s a really big advancement because, especially in India, cervical cancer is a terrible problem.
What is your take home message for doctors?
Primary care doctors, not just cancer doctors but his study is really geared towards primary prevention and those types of physicians. The reduction in cervical cancer mortality of 31% is remarkable and I would hope that they would support getting their healthcare professionals trained in doing the visual inspection with acetic acid.
