Accelerating action against breast and cervical cancer in Africa: Global women's health alliance expands to Zambia

Breast and cervical cancer are the leading cancers among women in Zambia.

According to GLOBOCAN - the international agency for cancer research - 8,863 women are diagnosed with cancer annually, and 5,649 die from it. This cancer burden is taking a severe toll on women and girls in Zambia.

Cervical and breast cancers alone account for 41% (3,640) and 12.5% (1,111) of new cases, respectively. Both cancers, when caught early, are treatable, but because of global health disparities, early detection, diagnosis, and treatment services are lagging.

Cervical cancer, though highly detectable and curable, is still one of the most common cancers worldwide. It ranks as the most frequent cancer among women in Zambia and is the leading cause of cancer mortality overall. Saving lives and closing this stark healthcare equity gap is essential.

While effective interventions against breast and cervical cancer are available at different stages of life, barriers remain that prevent women from accessing adequate solutions and keeping low levels of vaccination, screening, and treatment.

This week, from 13 to 14 November 2024, the World Economic Forum’s Breast and Cervical Cancer Coalition and Zambia’s Ministry of Health convened to support breast and cervical cancer detection, treatment, and care. The multistakeholder workshop was the Coalition’s first convening in Zambia after officially launching in July 2024 in Nairobi, Kenya.

The Zambia workshop brought together technical experts, civil society, private and public sector organizations to identify and solve challenges in the implementation of cervical and breast cancer screening, diagnosis, and treatment.

Through collaborative discussions, expert insights, and dedicated focus groups, workshop participants identified critical gaps, built actionable plans, and strengthened partnerships to accelerate the elimination of breast and cervical cancer.

The Breast and Cervical Cancer Coalition, an initiative created by the Forum’s Global Alliance for Women’s Health, accelerates and fosters unprecedented collaborations and meaningful solutions between key stakeholders uniquely positioned to expedite action. This weeks’ workshop was a milestone in the Alliance’s shared journey to combat cancer and improve health outcomes for women across Zambia and beyond.

The Coalition, which is supported by Siemens Healthineers, will provide Zambia’s Ministry of Health with access to an expert network of partners and resources, facilitate workshops and peer-to-peer exchange and help identify gaps and challenges where it can support public health goals. These goals will be met in line with Zambia’s National Cancer Control Plan 2022-2026.

The Coalition aims to develop and advance contextualized solutions to the country’s needs and challenges. Through this collaboration, the Ministry of Health will have the opportunity to showcase best practices and groundbreaking efforts for breast cancer care and cervical cancer elimination at home that could be replicated and scaled around the world.

While the Coalition was initially focused on Kenya and now Zambia, it provides an example of how multisector collaboration anywhere can be harnessed to boost women’s health and save lives. The Global Alliance for Women’s Health intends to expand the Coalition’s efforts to other ministries and countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

All members are hoping that by investing in the Coalition’s mission, they can contribute to building a future where their efforts add up to real change, empowering women, families, and communities.

In January 2024, the Global Alliance for Women’s Health released the Closing the Women’s Health Gap: A $1 Trillion Opportunity to Improve Lives and Economies report, which laid out the health conditions that uniquely or disproportionately affect women and quantifies the health gap today and the potential economic boom of bridging it tomorrow.

Addressing shortcomings - which limit the ability of many women to engage in the workforce and earn a living for themselves and their families - could reduce the time women spend in poor health by almost two-thirds, improve the health outcomes and daily lives of over 3.9 billion people, and lead to a 1.7% increase in per capita GDP, with every $1 invested in these efforts potentially unlocking $3 in economic growth.

Eliminating cervical cancer will not be simple, but doing so will have a transformative impact on the women’s health gap globally. Investing in women’s health is one of the best investments for societies and economies. There is compelling evidence that investing in women has a multiplier effect across various cross-cutting issues.

At an individual level, women are more likely to experience financial catastrophe due to cancer, with dire consequences for their families, even if quality cancer care is available, according to a recent study published in the Lancet.

The Global Alliance for Women's Health wishes to extend a special thanks to all partners and participants who have joined the Zambia Coalition and remain committed to advancing women's health.