IN HCR0017

Urges the Indiana General Assembly to recognize January as Cervical Cancer Awareness Month to encourage access to preventive services and medical care for women.

Nearly 13,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer annually in the United States, with over 4,000 deaths; Indiana sees approximately 250 diagnoses per year and 85 deaths annually.

African-American women have a 22 percent higher cervical cancer incidence rate and 50 percent higher mortality rate than Caucasian women from 2002 to 2011; Hispanic women have the highest incidence rate nationally.

Cervical cancer is almost 100 percent preventable through regular Pap tests and HPV vaccination, but approximately 79 million Americans currently have HPV without knowing they are infected.

Late-stage diagnoses and cervical cancer mortality are associated with poor access to preventive services and lack of understanding about follow-up care after abnormal findings.