Low-income, low-educated women make up the majority among Brazilian women who have never had a Pap smear | The National Gazette

The primary screening for cervical cancer has become a symbol of social inequality In the Brazil.

It’s a word that should be part of every woman’s vocabulary, but that’s not the Brazilian reality. a Pap smear It is a preventive gynecological examination intended for cervical cancer screening. But cleared Cancer FoundationBased on National Health Survey, shows that 6.1% of women ages 25-64 have never had this test; 12.6% of Brazilian women in this age group have not been tested for more than three years.

The medical recommendation is that the first two preventive measures be done within two consecutive years. In the case of a normal result, the test can be taken every three years.

According to the survey, social status directly affects access to the exam. Among the women who have never had a Pap smear, most have an income of less than one minimum wage and a low education. Most of them are young women, between 25 and 34 years old, black.

At the age of 52, housewife Luciana Gonçalves has yet to undergo a Pap smear.

“I’ve never tried to find out why because it’s too bad to go to the clinic to get tested. You’re faced with a waiting list, and there’s no other number or no gynecologist,” he says.

for all types of cancer, I dont know It is the third leading cause of death among Brazilian women. This disease can be I got cured If detected early.

“It is this question in a chain of many links. The first link is to collect the test; the second link is to get the result; the third, if the test is positive, perform the diagnosis; and if the diagnosis is positive, perform the treatment. If one of these links breaks the chain, We’re not going to achieve prevention, and that’s our goal,” says Flavia Miranda Correia, MD, medical advisor at the Cancer Foundation.

Psychologist Sandra Vianna discovered cancer in 2020, at the age of 32, after a preventive procedure. Today, free from disease and able to accompany her daughter’s growth, she knows very well the value of access to healthcare.

“By that first audition, I had time to take care of myself. I wanted to be a part of her 5th birthday. That’s what I asked: to be healthy, alive, and well for her 5th birthday. Julia is 6. I am I got it,” he says.