Cervical cancer burden in Latin America and the Caribbean: Where are we?

In May 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) called for the elimination of cervical cancer. To monitor this initiative, we examined cervical cancer incidence and mortality in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region using GLOBOCAN 2018, Cancer Incidence in Five Continents Series, and the WHO Mortality Database. We estimated the number of cases and age-standardized rates (ASRs) for cervical cancer incidence and mortality for 2018. We also presented the ASRs for recorded cervical cancer incidence from the period 2008 to 2012. We calculated annual rates and analyzed trends in cervical cancer incidence and mortality for all ages combined and for the following age groups: 0-29, 30-49, 50-64 and 65+. Finally, we calculated the estimated average annual percentage change in incidence and mortality rates for the past 10 years. In 2018, an estimated 56,000 new cervical cancer cases and 28,000 cervical cancer deaths occurred among women in LAC with great variations between subregions and countries/territories. Overall, trends in cervical cancer incidence and mortality have decreased over the past decade; however, the rates are still above the elimination threshold of 4 per 100,000 in most LAC countries/territories. Despite the encouraging trends observed, achieving the elimination of cervical cancer in the region still requests substantial political commitment and economic effort. Population-based cancer registries are critical in monitoring the elimination initiative.