IS CANCER SCREENING DURING WAR?

Abstract

The problem of cancer during the war and after the end of hostilities in Ukraine will worsen. According to some estimates, cancer incidence and mortality in our country may exceed the pre-war level.

Along with exposure to carcinogens, important factors that influence the development of cancer in people after the war are the massive demographic movements of the population, which increase the risk of transmission of oncogenic bacteria and viruses, such as Helicobacter pylori, Epstein-Barr virus, hepatitis B and C viruses and human papilloma virus. Sexually transmitted infections, including as a result of violence against civilians, occupy a special place in this series.

Today in Ukraine there is not only an urgent need for oncological screening, but all the possibilities for this. Self-sampling technology for cervical cancer screening is indispensable and has no alternative. They allow for mass surveys of the population, refugees and displaced persons affected by hostilities, without diverting health care resources for this.

The Qvintip test from the Swedish company Aprovix can be used not only to detect oncogenic human papillomavirus DNA strains, but also for PCR diagnosis of most sexually transmitted infections - bacterial vaginosis, candidiasis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, detection of trichomonas, ureaplasma, mycoplasma, treponema.

Screening in Ukraine is financed by the non-governmental non-profit organization of the charitable Foundation "World Against Cancer", created in the first days of the war.