Monica, 27, grew up in Guatemala City’s main dump and has never made it out. Today she works there pulling discarded perfumes out from the trash to sell on. Doing this means Monica is just able to feed herself, but has never had enough for health-care. She heard that a WINGS Cervical Cancer clinic was coming to her neighborhood and recalled a Pap-Smear she had years ago with a different organization: she never got the result back. Monica worried she was at risk of having HPV (Human papillomavirus) as she was raped when she was 20 by an unknown man.  

She decided to go the WINGS clinic and after some counseling got a Rapid Test for Cervical Cancer where she able to get her result within a minute. Unfortunately, her test revealed abnormal cell growth on her cervix. Monica was very frightened and the cancer was more advanced than WINGS' own Cryotherapy treatment can cure. But our nurse secured her an appointment with a specialist from the National Cancer Institute that same day so Monica began treatment within days. WINGS supported her through this and Monica has since made a great recovery. She is determined to get future checks with WINGS to make sure she stays in the clear.

Without this test, Monica would not have realized she was developing Cervical Cancer until it was too late. In fact, in Guatemala Uterine Cancer is the leading cause of Cancer related deaths in Guatemala even though it is highly treatable if detected early. With your support more women like Monica can get low-cost, reliable and rapid tests and treatment through WINGS.

Amanda’s sister persuaded her to tag along to a WINGS clinic in their community near Patzun. Despite being sexually active since marrying six years ago, 27-year old Amanda had never thought to get a cervical cancer test. At the WINGS’ mobile clinic she listened to a short talk explaining what cervical cancer is, risk factors, symptoms, and treatment and decided to get tested. She was pleased that the Via/Cryo techniques WINGS uses produce immediate results and same-day treatment if necessary. As this was all very new to her, Amanda was utterly shocked to learn that she had pre-cancerous cells. Our nurse and educator, Flori, explained the need for urgent treatment and Amanda opted for cryotherapy to tackle the cancer that very afternoon. This treatment has a success rate of 85-90% and Amanda’s experience was no exception. She is now healthy and plans to attend regular checkups in the future with her sister.

 WINGS' Nurse Flori (who treated Amanda) commented that, “for numerous economic and cultural reasons it can be hard to get women out of the house and into our mobile clinics. It’s important that they are educated in the risks they face and in how to seek reliable testing and treatment”.

Maria Antonia, 44, has had 14 pregnancies, including three miscarriages, and has nine living children. 

She came to WINGS after having waited three months in vain for Pap smear results from her local health clinic.  When she heard that WINGS was conducting screenings with same-day results, she decided to get tested again.  It is lucky she did, as the results showed that she had cervical cancer.  Within twenty-four hours, WINGS’ cervical cancer nurse brought Maria to a hospital for radiotherapy treatment. Now Maria looks forward to sharing her story with other women in her community so that they understand the risks of cervical cancer and decide to get screened.

Since 2001 WINGS has been providing Guatemalan women in underserved communities with same-day cervical cancer screening and treatment services, and subsidizing the cost of any necessary follow-up treatment.

In an initiative to reach even more women with this vital service, WINGS recently teamed up with Fundacion Pantaleon (The Pantaleon Foundation) who represent Central America’s largest sugar producer. In this successful collaboration, Fundacion Pantaleon covered the costs for WINGS to hold four months worth of cervical cancer screening clinics across 20 communities in the poor coastal region of Escuintla. Importantly, Pantaleon also arranged for leaders in target communities to carry out promotion of WINGS’ services to local women and worked with them to set up suitable locations for clinics to be held. This local support greatly eased the normal logistical challenges that WINGS staff must overcome to access women in a new community, and allowed them to focus wholly on providing high quality, rapid cervical cancer detection and treatment services. As a result, a phenomenal 1163 women were screened, many for the first time. Of these women, 15 screened positive for cervical cancer, 10 of whom were immediately treated by cryotherapy. Eight women were referred to follow-up medical treatment with WINGS’s support either due to the presence of advanced cancerous lesions or complex abnormalities. 

Paty, who coordinates the cervical cancer program, is delighted with the successful partnership, ¨it was excellent because we were able to work with communities that really need this service¨. WINGS is likely to continue working with Pantaleon this year and has already set up similar projects with other local industries.

For more information about Fundacion Pantaleon visit their website: http://www.fundacionpantaleon.org/index.php?showPage=440&cache=1

Dear Friend,

WINGS is excited to have been invited to participate in GlobalGiving’s last matching challenge of the year.  This is the perfect opportunity to make your generous donation go further in support of WINGS’ efforts to provide Guatemalan women with cervical cancer detection and treatment services.

Here’s how it works: for every donation that you make to our cervical cancer project, http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/detect-and-treat-cervical-cancer-in-guatemala/, between TODAY and October 21^st, GlobalGiving will match your donation by 30, 40 or 50% - the larger the donation the greater the matching amount!  If we raise the most donations we are eligible for a bonus award of $1,000.

Making a donation to WINGS’ Cervical Cancer Detection and Treatment Program will help save lives.  Of all new cases of cervical cancer, 80% occur in developing countries where effective screening programs are lacking. Amongst developing countries, the rates are highest in Sub-Saharan Africa and Central America.  Given the lack of an adequate government plan, few Guatemala women have ever been screened for cervical cancer. As a result, cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among Guatemalan women of reproductive age, killing more women than breast, skin, ovarian and stomach cancers combined.  This is extremely tragic, especially given the fact that, when caught early, cervical cancer is highly treatable. 

WINGS plays an important role in bringing cervical cancer detection and treatment services to rural and underserved communities.  Through the use of mobile clinics, WINGS gives women, many of whom have never been screened before, a chance to take charge of their reproductive health.  WINGS is one of the only organizations in Guatemala to use the “see and treat” method (also known as VIA/Cryo) which allows for same-day detection, and in the majority of cases, treatment of precancerous cells.  This method is especially effective for women in rural and underserved communities, who often have difficulty attending follow-up clinics. 

Just one of WINGS’ success stories is Blanca, a cervical cancer survivor and mother of five.  Three years ago, when Blanca visited a WINGS clinic, a WINGS nurse discovered that Blanca had advanced stages of cervical cancer and referred her to the National Cancer Institute of Guatemala, where WINGS helped subsidize the cost of her surgery and follow-up treatment.  It is because Blanca visited one of WINGS’ clinics that she is alive and healthy today.  In speaking with Blanca, she says that her only regret is that her mother, who died at the age of 45 from cervical cancer, did not have access to such services.

You can help ensure that WINGS can continue to provide life-saving services to women like Blanca TODAY by participating in GlobalGivings’ Give More, Get More Challenge. A donation of just $50 will be matched at 30% and cover the cost of detection and treatment services for 4 women.  To further your support, ask your friends and family to visit our GlobalGiving project at http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/detect-and-treat-cervical-cancer-in-guatemala/

Thank you for supporting WINGS and for helping to improve the lives of women in Guatemala.

Sincerely,

The WINGS Team

P.S.  To see where WINGS ranks in the competition, click here.

WINGS has been fortunate enough to host numerous, well-qualified volunteers in 2010. Here is what one volunteer, Shelly Cooper, said about working for WINGS’ Cervical Cancer Detection and Treatment Program this past summer:

“I couldn’t have spent my summer off from medical school working with a more valuable program than WINGS’ cervical cancer program. After reviewing patient charts and attending clinics, I had the opportunity to talk to many Guatemalan women and hear their amazing stories. Many of the women had never been screened for cervical cancer before. Of those that had previously been screened using a Pap-smear, the majority had never received their results and/or several years had passed since their last screening. In addition to the invaluable preventative medicine component of these clinics, the nurses are also able to detect and begin treating various vaginal infections that same day. Patients may have been suffering for months until the WINGS mobile clinic happens to be in their municipality and distributes the necessary antibiotics. These clinics also provide a unique opportunity for women to comfortably talk with two experienced Guatemalan nurses about family planning, OBGYN issues or just basic female anatomy! The WINGS cervical cancer program is truly a successful and effective program.” WINGS’ cervical cancer program was very successful this past summer. In July alone, WINGS nurses screened 263 women for cervical cancer. Of these women, 97% were screened for the first time ever. These clinics likely saved the lives of three women who were found to have early signs of cervical cancer. WINGS’ staff was able to successfully treat two of these women with cryotherapy on the same day. The third, who showed signs of more advanced cancer, was referred to the National Cancer Institute, where WINGS will subsidize the cost of all follow-up treatment needed to help save her life.

WINGS is very grateful to its donors who help make these life-saving services available to underserved women in Guatemala. Thank you for your continued support of WINGS and for making a real difference in the lives of women in Guatemala!

Sincerely,

The WINGS Team

Dear friend,

I am writing to let you know about an exciting opportunity to double your impact and help to ensure that all women in Guatemala have access to life-saving reproductive health services.

On June 16th, GlobalGiving will be matching all online donations at 50% (up to $1,000 per donor) to WINGS’ project Detect and Treat Cervical Cancer in Guatemala. In addition, GlobalGiving will award a $1,000 bonus to the project that raises the most funds that day and a $1,000 bonus to the project that receives the largest number of individual donations!

Why should you care? Cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women of reproductive age in the developing world and kills more than 274,000 women annually. In Guatemala, cervical cancer accounts for more deaths than breast, skin, ovarian and stomach cancers combined. Despite being one of the most easily preventable and detectable types of cancer, only 25% of Guatemalan women living in underserved, rural communities have ever been screened for this disease.

What is being done? Since 2001, WINGS has provided high-quality cervical cancer detection and treatment services to more than 25,000 Guatemalan women. In addition, WINGS is one of the only organizations in Guatemala to use the VIA/Cryo method, a low-cost technique that allows for screening results to be given the same day and can treat more than half of detected abnormalities immediately. The VIA/Cryo method is especially effective for women living in rural areas, as it reduces the need for return visits, which are often difficult or expensive for women in isolated or low-income areas.

How can you make a difference? Donate on June 16th to our project Detect and Treat Cervical Cancer in Guatemala on GlobalGiving and your donation will be matched at 50%. Consider the tremendous impact your GlobalGiving gift will have on the lives of women:

- A donation of just $20 will be matched at 50%, for a total donation of $30 - enough to cover the cost of detection and treatment for 2 women. - A donation of $50 will be matched for a total donation of $75 – enough to cover the cost of detection and treatment for 5 women. - A donation of $100 will be mated for a total donation of $150 – enough to cover the cost of detection and treatment for 10 women.

In order to ensure that WINGS is able to continue to provide these life-saving services, make a donation today and pass this email onto your friends and family.

Our heartfelt thanks for your support of WINGS and for helping to improve the lives of women in Guatemala.

Sincerely,

The WINGS Team

WINGS nurse provides info about cervical cancer

Links:

• WINGS website

A report published in January 2010 concludes that using a “see and treat” approach to diagnosing cervical cancer in rural and developing countries could save more than 100,000 cervical cancer deaths annually. The study, published in the journal The Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, said that visual inspection with acetic acid, which costs about $2 per test, could help decrease the estimated 300,000 cervical cancer deaths each year, 85% of which occur in developing countries.

This study confirms what WINGS has long known, that providing women with simple and affordable same-day detection and treatment services is the most effective way to prevent cervical cancer. This is why, since 2006, WINGS has used the “see and treat” method as its primary method to detect and treat cervical cancer. This past year, WINGS used the “see and treat” method to screen more than 3,200 women, as well as provided same-day treatment to 60% of the women who showed precancerous signs.

The benefits of the “see and treat” method cannot be understated. In Guatemala, cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths among women of reproductive age, with 3.77 million Guatemalan women currently at risk for this potentially fatal cancer. Over 60 percent of female cancer cases attended by the National Cancer Institute in Guatemala are cervical cancer, which accounts for more than breast, skin, ovarian and stomach cancers combined.

With your support, we can help to save lives by ensuring that ALL women in Guatemala have access to simple and affordable cervical cancer detection services. Consider the impact that your donation will have:

• A gift of $28 will ensure that 2 women receive “see and treat” detection and treatment • A gift of $50 will cover the costs of follow-up treatment for 4 women • A gift of $100 will provide 30 women with “see and treat” detection

Thank you for your continued support of WINGS and for helping to ensure that all Guatemalan women have access to same-day detection and treatment services.

Sincerely,

The WINGS Team

This past year, WINGS provided cervical cancer screening and treatment services to 4,352 women, a 30 percent increase from 2007! This brings the total number of women who have participated in the Cervical Cancer Detection and Treatment program to more than 22,000 since the program’s inception in 2001.

For many, WINGS’ cervical cancer detection services are the first they have ever had. At one recent WINGS’ clinic, 87-year-old Maria had her first Pap smear. A mother of 12, she encouraged her daughters and daughters-in-law to attend as well. In her own words, she “wanted to be a good example.” Other women go to great lengths to reach our cervical cancer detection clinics. Gloria, 33, walked more than an hour to reach one of our rural clinics, taking time off work to do so. It was worth it; the exam revealed complications and the need for an emergency hysterectomy. Since Gloria did not have the financial resources to pay for the surgery, WINGS covered the cost of her follow-up treatment.

WINGS’ cervical cancer detection and treatment project literally saves lives. Last year, WINGS used cryotherapy to provide same-day treatment to 29 women who screened positive for cervical abnormalities, and covered the costs for another 37 women, whose conditions required more intensive treatment than WINGS could provide at the clinic.

With your support, WINGS will be able to screen even more Guatemalan women for cervical cancer and reduce the number of unnecessary deaths caused by this disease.

In a surprising move that hopefully demonstrates a new commitment to women’s health issues, Guatemala’s Ministry of Health recently launched an initiative that aims to screen 85% of reproductive-age women in Guatemala for cervical cancer by 2012. The initiative is bold and necessary, as cervical cancer is a deadly killer in Guatemala. According the World Health Organization, cervical cancer affects more Guatemalan women annually than breast, stomach, or ovarian cancer. Cervical cancer also has the highest mortality rate of any cancer in Guatemala, including those affecting men, despite being one of the most easily detectable and easily treatable (when caught early) types of cancer. In Guatemala, only 40% of women have ever received a pap smear, and the vast majority of those who have been tested at least once do not receive screening on a regular basis.

In recognition of the successful efforts of WINGS’ Cervical Cancer program, the Ministry of Health has asked WINGS to help in reaching their ambitious goal. In 2009, WINGS will participate in four trainings with a local partner organization, Faith in Practice, in which WINGS staff will help train government health service providers and other NGOs on the VIA/Cryo method that WINGS currently utilizes. Unlike pap smears, visual inspection of the cervix with acetic acid (VIA) allows for an instant diagnosis, a benefit which is crucial in a country where even a single trip to a doctor can be too costly in time and money for many women. And, when VIA is paired with cryotherapy treatment (CRYO), almost half of women who show pre-cancerous lesions can obtain same-day treatment.

On behalf of the team here at WINGS and the thousands of Guatemalans that benefit from your contributions, thank you! We are grateful for your support.