Kolkata, June 13 (IANS). Free cervical cancer vaccination for girls has started from May 30 after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government came to power in West Bengal.
A senior government official said that from now onwards a special campaign of HPV vaccination will also be started for the adolescent girls studying in madrassas of West Bengal.
This program will be coordinated with the district administration and health department as per the guidelines and standard operating procedures of the state health and family welfare department. The officer further said that instructions have been given to the concerned government officials in this regard.
Despite the rapid development of technology and continuous research in medical science, cervical cancer is still viewed as an incurable disease.
However, continuous work is going on in India. On the initiative of the Central Government, a free vaccination program is being run for girls of a certain age for early prevention of this disease.
After the BJP government came to power in West Bengal, this time the people of the state are getting its benefits. According to the official, cases of cervical cancer are increasing. Six lakh new cases of cervical cancer are reported globally every year.
The mortality rate from cancer is approximately 34 lakh per year. In this country, cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women. In India, 14 new cervical cancer patients per 100,000 women undergo treatment every year and the death rate is nine per 100,000.
Considering the population of India, this number is not very less. The central government has emphasized on free vaccination for the prevention of this cancer. Doctors say that by getting vaccinated on time, cancer can be prevented by about 75 to 80 percent.
Under the vaccination program of the Centre, free vaccination program has also been started in West Bengal. West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said that the central government has sent seven lakh vaccines to the state. It started from Bidhannagar Sub-District Hospital located in Salt Lake area of Kolkata.
Any girl above 14-15 years of age can get cervical cancer vaccine. From now on, cervical cancer vaccination will be administered in madrassas as per the guidelines of the Health Department. The state government hopes that this program will also increase health awareness among madrassa students.
–IANS
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