Worldwide Issues
Women In Turkey (WIT) To Become First International Chapter Location For NCCC
March 17, 2008- Didim, Aydin, Turkey - The Women in Turkey project in Didim will become the first in Turkey to front up an international awareness campaign on cervical cancer.
The US-based National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC) approached the group to become its Turkish affiliate partner as part of its international chapter.
WIT, led by Voices columnist Kym Ciftci, will now benefit from receiving up to the minute information about cervical cancer prevention, new detection and treatment options, including prevention with vaccines and the importance of regular test screening and HPV testing when recommended.
The NCCC, founded in 1996, is a grassroots nonprofit organization dedicated to serving women with, or at risk for, cervical cancer and HPV disease. It has more than 4,500 members worldwide and members include women and family members, carers, women's groups, medical experts, laboratories, technology companies, cancer researchers, and organizations providing cervical cancer screening programs.
NCCC chairman Alan Kaye contacted WIT to become a part of the coalition after an article on Voices’ website about its February meeting focusing on cervical cancer and the HPV virus with a talk by local doctor Nurdan Kalkan.
As part of the talk, she informed members that astoundingly, this injection can be given to females as young as 9 years of age! It consists of 2 injections over the course of a year at 250 lira per injection.
Kym said: “WIT is highly honoured and delighted to be invited by the NCCC to become the first Turkish member in its international chapter.”
“In real terms, it means that our members will be able to get the latest information from a reputable organization on cervical cancer, the treatments and preventions. ”
“WIT were immensely proud to have made such gains in such a small space of time and they would continue to work toward the education of all women in Turkey on the subject of the link between Cervical Cancer and the HPV Virus with the support of The NCCC.”
Cervical cancer is a major killer among women. Each year in the United States alone about 10,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and about 3,700 women die in the USA from this disease.
Women in developing countries account for about 85 percent of both the yearly cases of cervical cancer - estimated at 473,000 cases worldwide and cancer deaths - about 253,500 worldwide. Cervical cancer remains the number one cause of cancer-related deaths in women.
