THE Jamaica Cancer Society (JCS) has joined forces with the Caribbean Cancer Alliance (CCA) in the effort to make cervical cancer screening accessible to all Caribbean women.

A cervical e-petition, which was launched earlier this year by the members of the Alliance, seeks to engage and lobby Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) to make the service more affordable and accessible.

Executive Director of the JCS, Yulit Gordon, said that over 2.5 million signatures are required for the petition to be taken to Caricom.

She noted that the CCA is hoping to get more than one million signatures from Jamaica.

Gordon is asking Jamaicans, and by extension, Caricom nationals, to sign the petition by logging on to the JCS website (www.jamaicacancersociety.org) and clicking on the area that encourages persons to sign.

“It only takes a few seconds and in the long term, we will be reaping huge dividends as it relates to safeguarding our women’s health,” Gordon stated.

According to Gordon, over 600,000 cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed within the Caribbean each year, with over 25,000 women succumbing to this disease. She said the JCS is working to implement the necessary strategic programmes to protect women from cervical cancer.

She said that the organisation has a dedicated cervical cancer unit, as well as a sustained public education and outreach programme that offers accurate and timely information on cervical cancer.