The Swire South Pacific Foundation (SSPF) has granted AU$25.9 million to advance the elimination of cervical cancer in the South Pacific. The investment will enable various countries in the region to partner with the Kirby Institute, a world-leading health research institute at UNSW Sydney, Australia, in the fight against the disease.
The SSPF was established by John Swire & Sons Limited to support philanthropic activity in the South Pacific. Sam Swire, Executive Director, John Swire & Sons Limited, says, "Swire Shipping has been serving the island nations of the South Pacific for nearly 100 years. We have been a proud part of the region's recent history, and have expanded our services as the regional economy has grown. We have long had local programmes working in the communities which we serve, but recently we decided to take our funding to a higher level, looking for projects which could have meaningful impact throughout the region."
The SSPF is funding a five-year programme to introduce and scale-up HPV screening and treatment in the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Fiji and the Solomon Islands. The programmes will be led by the Ministry of Health in each country with support from the Kirby Institute, which will provide technical guidance, training and accreditation, logistics management, a digital screening registry, project impact reporting, monitoring and evaluation.
According to the World Health Organization, rates of cervical cancer in the South Pacific are among the highest in the world, with the disease being the number one cause of cancer-related deaths among women in the region. Almost all cases of cervical cancer are due to HPV infection. However, most women with the infection or early cervical disease do not experience symptoms, making screening essential for early detection and to prevent its progression.
