January is Cervical Health Awareness Month

January is Cervical Health Awareness Month. The World Health Organization has a plan for the elimination of cervical cancer through vaccination and screening—we can get there! This January, we encourage you to learn more about cervical health and cervical cancer prevention and take steps to help eliminate this preventable cancer. Below are resources from our program, the National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC).

Learn about Screening with Self Collection

If you’re doing an HPV test alone, you may be able to avoid the pelvic exam and speculum. The FDA has approved tests that allow you to collect your own specimen from your vagina. That specimen will then be sent to a lab to check for the presence of HPV, and specifically for the high-risk types of the virus that cause cervical cancer.

We also invited Dr. Rebecca Perkins from Tufts University Medical School to talk about this new screening tool and its potential to help get more women screened and prevent cervical cancer.

For Partners and Families

When a loved one has an abnormal screening result or a positive test for HPV, it can be confusing. You can offer support by learning what cervical cancer screening is, how to support your loved one through abnormal results, what follow up treatments and tests are, and how to help after a cancer diagnosis.

Learn More at NCCC

Get Involved—Download the Toolkit for Advocates

Are you interested in raising awareness about cervical cancer and HPV disease? Great! There are so many ways you can get involved. Check out NCCC's page on advocacy to get ideas for ways you can educate family, friends, and your broader community. The Toolkit for Advocates has printable materials, a sample press release, social media content, and more as well as a guide to getting started.

Get the Tooklit

Check in with a Local NCCC Chapter

NCCC volunteer chapter leaders—many of whom are cervical cancer survivors—are passionate about seeking out opportunities to educate people in their local communities. They bring a true passion to help others and have reached thousands of people across this country through their efforts. You can check here to see if you have a local chapter and see a list of local chapter events.

Promote Cervical Health on Social Media

You can help NCCC promote the importance of cervical health and cervical cancer prevention by sharing prevention messages throughout the month that cervical cancer is preventable! Download all of the images along with suggested messages here.

Download Content to Share

Free ebook: HPV & Cervical Cancer: Stories from Survivors and Supporters
Cervical Cancer Awareness Month Posters (click on an image to view and download)