LONG AN The Cửu Long (Mekong) province of Long An has faced many obstacles in cervical cancer screening, according to the provincial department of health.

Funds for the work are limited and medical workers did not receive professional training for cervical cancer screening.

Cervical cancer screening was conducted in several reproductive healthcare campaigns. Thus only more than 20 per cent of local women of childbearing age had knowledge of the disease.

The province also lacks equipment and medicine to treat cervical cancer.

Lê Thị Thu Cúc, deputy chairwoman of the Long An Federation of Trade Union, said many women refused to have the examination, thus education to raise women’s awareness on the disease prevention was very important.

Võ Thị Định, deputy director of the provincial Diseases Control Centre, said cervical cancer could be treated completely with early discovery.

The province has set up a draft project on cervical cancer screening for 2019-25, aiming that by 2025, as many as 60 per cent of local women between the age of 30 and 54 will receive free-of-charge screenings.

All medical workers are hoped to be equipped with knowledge about the disease, and the province aims to acquire enough equipment for the work. — VNS