Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology will be observing November as 'Cancer of Cervix awareness month'. The institute will also be conducting free screening with free pap smear and HPV tests. The institute will also organise medical education programme on November 24.

Caused by Human Papillomavirus (HPV), around 1 lakh cases are diagnosed every year in India with an age-adjusted rate of 18 per 1,00,000 population. In Karnataka alone, 5,000 new cases are identified each year. In Bengaluru, cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among females with 850 cases being diagnosed every year. At Kidwai hospital, about 1,500 cases of cervical cancer are registered every year accounting to 24% of all female cancers.

Dr C Ramachandra, director of the institute said that most patients are diagnosed at a later stage which makes it difficult for their survival.  "There is a general lack of awareness and organised screening for cervical cancer in India," he added.