Official websites use. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. The manuscript was drafted by SB, and critically revised by all authors, who all agreed on the finalized version. A retrospective analysis of characteristics, outcomes, and follow-up of women attending an initial CC screening visit in Abidjan between January and December Data were collected via forms that were systematically completed during CC screening visits.
Data from the population census was used to estimate screening coverage. Among 16 women attending an initial CC screening, Among women eligible for immediate cryotherapy, The 1-year follow-up rate after cryotherapy was The estimated coverage of CC screening in Abidjan was 1.
Despite successful expansion of CC screening from HIV clinics to other facilities, the estimated screening coverage of the targeted population remained low. Follow-up of positively screened and treated women is a major challenge, especially outside HIV clinics, and would benefit from an innovative information system proving unique identification and tracking systems. Cervical cancer CC is a leading cause of cancer among women worldwide. This malignancy, which is characterized by a long asymptomatic phase, is preventable through screening [ 2 ].
Screening via the Pap smear test has substantially reduced the incidence of and mortality from CC in high-income countries; however, this test has been poorly implemented in LMIC due to the requirements for medical infrastructure and human resources [ 3 ]. Visual inspection with acetic acid VIA , which is a more feasible and affordable CC screening method, has been tested and implemented in various LMIC, and shown to be an acceptable alternative, despite its limited sensitivity [ 4 ].
These screening initiatives gradually expanded to include all women, irrespective of HIV status. Apart from a few countries such as Zambia, where a successful scale-up of HIV-integrated CC screening programs has been reported [ 14 ], there are limited data on the scaling up of CC screening from pilot projects to population-based screening in sub-Saharan Africa.
