As South Africa intensifies its battle against cervical cancer, government, health experts and global partners gathered at a powerful high-level policy dialogue during the G20 Social Summit to push for faster action towards eliminating the disease by 2030.
The event, titled sharing of best practices on accelerating cervical cancer elimination, brought together leaders from government, NGOs, the private sector and international bodies.
4th most common cancer among women
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women worldwide. But in South Africa the crisis hits even harder. It is the second most common cancer affecting women aged 15 to 44. And it is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in this age group.
Nearly 6, 000 South African women die from the disease every year. This is a devastating toll that falls heavily on women living with HIV. They are six times more likely to develop cervical cancer.
More than 95% of cervical cancer cases are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), a common virus that almost all sexually active people will get at some point, often without knowing it. While most infections clear on their own, persistent high-risk HPV can lead to cancer if left undetected and untreated.
Delivering the keynote address, Minister of Health Dr Aaron Motsoaledi described cervical cancer as a matter of social justice and gender equality. He reaffirmed South Africa’s commitment to the World Health Organisation’s ambitious 90-70-90 targets:
- 90% of girls fully vaccinated by age 15
- 70% of women screened at least twice in their lifetime
- 90% of women with pre-cancer or cancer receiving proper treatment
Vaccination campaign
Motsoaledi revealed that 6 million girls have already been vaccinated through the national school-based campaign since 2014. He announced that the programme will now be extended to independent and private schools. And South Africa will adopt the single-dose HPV vaccine guideline, a move expected to boost coverage.
“Too many women are still diagnosed too late because they cannot access timely screening and follow-up care,” Motsoaledi warned. He stressed the urgent need to strengthen screening, referrals and treatment, particularly for women living with HIV.
Improving access to treatments such as thermal ablation is crucial to saving lives. It will also restore dignity in women’s healthcare, he added.
Zwelethu Bashman, Managing Director of MSD South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, said his company remains deeply committed to preventing HPV-related cancers. MSD is the developer of both the quadrivalent and nine-valent HPV vaccines. The latter offers the broadest protection against high-risk cancer-causing strains.
“MSD is the largest supplier of HPV vaccines on the continent. It supports programmes in over 30 African countries and contributes to the vaccination of more than 17 million girls,” Bashman said.
Key partnerships aid fight
Through partnerships with UNICEF and Gavi, the company has supplied over 115 million doses worldwide since 2021. However, vaccine hesitancy continues to undermine progress.
“We are investing heavily in community education. And we’re working with healthcare workers, patient groups and even health influencers to counter misinformation and build confidence in HPV vaccines,” Bashman explained.
For Neo Molusi, External Affairs Lead at Roche Diagnostics and Diabetes Care, the message was simple: early detection saves lives.
“When cervical cancer is found early, the five-year survival rate is as high as 91%. Once it spreads, that figure drops to just 19%,” he said.
Molusi stressed that without diagnostics, medicine is blind. She calls for the urgent scaling of high-throughput HPV testing to meet the national screening targets. This to ensure that no woman is left behind.
Urgent actions needed
Bashman highlighted four urgent actions needed to fast-track elimination of cervical cancer in South Africa:
- Expanding vaccination to adult women, especially those living with HIV
- Introducing gender-neutral vaccination, which strengthens national protection
- Fast-tracking access to higher-valency HPV vaccines
- Expanding access to innovative cancer treatments
He pointed to Botswana and Eswatini as regional leaders. The two have already expanded HPV vaccination to protect girls and adolescents living with HIV. And they are setting a powerful example for the rest of Southern Africa.
Speakers also called for stronger cancer surveillance. They called for better data systems, and a national cancer dashboard to track real progress. Beyond technology and policy, the message was clear: communities must be at the centre of the solution.
Reducing costs, improving health literacy and creating safe, dignified care environments were highlighted as critical to increasing uptake. Partnerships between government, industry and civil society were praised for bringing science closer to real-life women’s experiences.
Motsoaledi firmly defended public awareness campaigns. He compared them to South Africa’s successful HIV testing drives.
“Visibility drives understanding, and understanding drives action,” he said.
With improved vaccination, reliable screening, decisive action against misinformation and strengthened treatment pathways, South Africa can turn the tide on one of its deadliest, yet most preventable cancers.
