Foreword

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women worldwide, with just under half a million new cases recorded per year and nearly half a million deaths. Over 80% of the deaths from cervical cancer occur in the developing world where access to cytology-based screening programs is minimal or absent. It has been well established that cervical cancer is a largely preventable disease. In countries that have successfully implemented and sustained well organized cervical cancer screening programs, cervical cancer has been rendered a relatively rare disease. These programs are however expensive to maintain and in most instances, are beyond the human, financial and health infrastructure resources of developing countries. There is now strong epidemiological, clinical and molecular evidence that infection of the cervix with high-risk types of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is a necessary albeit not sufficient cause for the development of cervical cancer. This knowledge has led to the development of highly effective vaccines against cancer-associated HPVs (particularly