“I didn’t even know what it was,” said the 50-year-old Egyptian mother about the cluster of skintag-like growths around her exterior genitalia that was caused by a virus commonly transmitted sexually.
She was shocked when her gynecologist informed her that the growths were caused by the human papillomavirus, known as HPV. She was then referred for a test that would be able to detect any irregularities in her cervical cells. Luckily, no changes in those cells were found.
The woman spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity, fearing ostracization from her community where the subject of sexually transmitted infections remains taboo. She said she had never heard of the virus before, but that regardless of how she contracted it, she believes that awareness and the vaccine are essential for young girls, including her own daughter. The vaccine could have helped her avoid her current plight, she said.
Her case is one of many in Egypt, and comes as activists and medical workers sound alarm bells over a problem they say is overlooked in the country – namely the reluctance of many conservative doctors and parents to give the HPV vaccine to young girls.
The problem, experts say, stems from a lack of awareness and understanding of the virus, as well as persistent social stigma about the disease being a sign of promiscuity among women.
This has led countless women down painful roads with HPV, experts say, the virus that causes more than 95% of cervical cancers in women, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer among women globally, says WHO, and in 2020 it killed some 342,000 women globally. About 90% of new cases and deaths that year occurred in low-income and middle-income countries.
“The main problem is that it is actually not a common vaccination in the Global South,” said Lobna Darwish, gender and human rights officer at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), which launched its own awareness campaign in March 2022.
“Very few countries in the Global South are actually doing (routine HPV vaccines), and Egypt has an opportunity to be one of the leaders (on this program),” she said.
Egypt’s ministry of health has published brief awareness pamphlets on its social media platforms about the virus, noting some of its key symptoms and asking women to schedule routine check-ups. The ministry has also advised women to take the HPV vaccine.
