The HPV testing kits are currently out of stock at the organization which had recently urged women to come by its center to get tested free of charge.

The director at Stichting Lobi, Nensy Bandhoe, explained that women would have to pay SRD 1,500 for the HPV test. She explained that if a donor or the State Health Fund (SZF) is willing to cover the costs, the tests could be carried out free of charge again. HPV, or human papillomavirus, is very common and spread through sex. Most HPV infections clear up on their own but some linger, causing cancers that appear years later, including cervical cancer in women and rarer cancers in both women and men. Early detection increases the chances of a successful treatment. Bandhoe deems it important for everybody to understand the importance of a healthy population. She explained that the World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a program aimed at eliminating cervical cancer and that Suriname has also committed itself to carrying out this program. “We urge the ministry to collaborate because Stichting Lobi can’t do this alone. It is essential for all parties to actively be involved. Let’s join forces and make a joint effort to get the national cervical cancer program off the ground. We can only protect this country and the women who live here if we work together,” said the director of Stichting Lobi. During the first round of testing that was organized in the second week of January about 700 women got tested. Bandhoe made it clear that prevention is of the utmost importance and that women should therefore get tested for HPV. “Get tested so that lives can be saved.”