Jan 10, Kathmandu- In order to prevent cervical cancer, 26,000 girls of Kanchanpur will be vaccinated against HPV. The vaccination campaign, which will be conducted for seven days from Magh 22, will be administered to teenage girls studying in grades 6 to 10 at their schools.

Janak Bahadur Kunwar, an officer at the Health Office, Kanchanpur, said that there is a program to vaccinate out-of-school girls aged between 10 and 14. According to him, an orientation training is being conducted for 102 heads of health institutions in the district from Paush 21 to 29 to conduct the vaccination program.

Officer Kunwar informed that there is a program to provide training to teachers, municipal resource persons, women's health volunteers, doctors, and other health workers.

Shuklaphanta Health Branch Chief Paramananda Bhatta said that regular cervical screening should be conducted for timely identification and diagnosis of diseases. He urged women above the age of 30 to undergo regular cervical screening every five years and HIV-infected women every three years.

Various studies conducted in Nepal have shown that the rate and risk of cancer are increasing day by day. Among the cancers that occur in women, cervical cancer is found to be the most common. Doctors have urged people to take precautions as the HPV virus is mainly transmitted through contact with the skin, mucous membranes or fluids of the genitals of an infected person during sexual contact with an infected person.