The Hill: Collaboration is key to reaching women at risk for cervical cancer
Crystal Cazier, program manager for the Global Health Initiative at the George W. Bush Institute

“…Go Further, a partnership between the George W. Bush Institute, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), UNAIDS, and Merck, works to prioritize women living with HIV in cervical cancer programs. … The integration of cervical cancer screening and treatment into HIV care has been a critical factor in Go Further’s ability to scale quickly. PEPFAR built a well-functioning model for care delivery in sub-Saharan Africa upon which additional health services have been successfully delivered, including for cervical cancer. … Congress’s continued support of PEPFAR has allowed women to not only survive HIV but to thrive throughout their lifetimes. Congress should maintain full funding for PEPFAR and allow the program the flexibility it needs to build on its success by integrating services into the HIV platform, including for cervical cancer, and following a public health approach, like PEPFAR’s DREAMS program. It’s not only the right thing to do, but it protects the investments U.S. taxpayers have made in PEPFAR over the past 17 years. As we build additional services into the PEPFAR platform, we are making progress towards ensuring broad access to quality health care. Integration is a strategy for advancing access, but full integration of all key health services is not immediately realistic everywhere. … Coordination between HIV/AIDS and cervical cancer should be reflected not just in implementation but among organizations working for improved health outcomes at all levels, whether civil society and community groups or large multilateral and global partnerships…” (1/22).