Journal: Health promotion practice
This scoping systematic review examined health system–level strategies to overcome barriers to cervical cancer screening (CCS) in Sub-Saharan Africa, a region with the highest cervical cancer incidence and mortality worldwide.
From 4,682 articles screened, 42 studies across 17 countries were analyzed.
Effective strategies included:
- Offering HPV self-sampling
- Single-visit screening and treatment
- Providing services in nonclinical community settings
- Task-sharing with trained nonclinical providers
- Integrating CCS into existing health services like HIV clinics
The review highlights these approaches as promising for improving CCS uptake and achieving the WHO goal of screening 70% of women in the region.