HPV and Cervical Cancer Prevention for West Africa

In March 2011, the HPV KAP pilot study commenced in Sikoro as the first step to starting HPV vaccination in Mali.  A team led by Dr. Tounkara Karamoko and Danielle Poole successfully met the goal of completing 50 interviews in the community surrounding the village clinic to better understand the knowledge and views of participants on vaccination and the link between HPV, cervical cancer, and mortality.

This study began with the intense training of four interviewers on the transmission, infection, and prevention of HPV.  After becoming experts in the topic of HPV and research fieldwork, the team set out this week with questionnaires and educational material.  Each interview was conducted in the participants home, and began with a brief overview of the study, followed by informed consent, and then the questionnaires and education component. 

First, the participants were asked a series of questions about their risk behaviors for HPV infection, and their knowledge and willingness to participate in an HPV vaccine study.  The interviewer than described HPV transmission, symptoms and associated diseases, and prevention to the participant.  A second questionnaire was administered to determine if this information was clearly explained, and if the knowledge changed participant’s willingness to participate in a vaccine study.

This pilot study is currently in the process of analysis, although early on it looks as though the interviewers succeeded in educating the participants about HPV.  N taara!

• Interviewing in the community (PDF)