The study, part of mPharma’s “10,000 Women Initiative,” aimed to provide free HPV testing to women in Ghana and Nigeria to combat rising cervical cancer cases.
According to the findings reported by Gavi, 25 out of 105 nuns who participated in the screening tested positive for high-risk HPV. The initiative offered self-collection kits to nuns in convents across the Greater Accra, Volta, and Central regions of Ghana.
Those who tested positive underwent further diagnostics, including Pap smears and colposcopies, with clinically relevant changes found in two individuals. Follow-up tests indicated they were in good health.
“Our main aim was to offer cervical cancer prevention services to a group that might have been ignored,” the researchers said.
Dr. Kofi Effah, head of the Cervical Cancer Prevention and Training Centre at the Catholic Hospital in Battor, Ghana, emphasized how this discovery challenges the assumption that nuns are at low risk for HPV infection.
He explained that non-s3xual transmission of HPV is possible and that the practice of using and sharing bulb syringes (bentua) in Ghana could be a contributing factor.
“The use of bulb syringes (bentua) is common in Ghana and in many families, the bulb syringes are shared by family members, including children,” Effah stated.
HPV, often linked to s3xual transmission, can also spread through non-s3xual means. In rare instances, it can be transmitted from mother to child during childbirth, especially if the mother has genital warts.
Other potential transmission methods include casual contact, such as hand-to-genital contact, as HPV has been found on common surfaces like toilet seats and medical tools, according to Prof. Alan Nyitray of the Medical College of Wisconsin.
“While a man’s penis is typically seen as the primary vehicle for HPV transmission, non-penetrative activities like hand-to-genital contact could also spread the virus,” Nyitray noted.
This study highlights the importance of screening all populations for HPV, as diverse transmission pathways exist beyond s3xual contact.