Single-disease health campaigns: the case of cervical cancer.

摘要

August Burns and colleagues (April 16, p 1318)1 assert that "we must address cervical cancer now". They follow this with unjustifiable estimates of the cost and logistics of doing so.Visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) cannot cost as little as USDollars 0-23 after allowance for real costs such as sterilisation of specula and payment of staff. Add to that the cost of vehicles, fuel, driver, displacement of other core medical services, maintenance of lights and other equipment, and the sum rises even further. Also, although VIA is easily taught, few practitioners have the experience to do so.