Zoya Shams is a married woman and a mother of three. She moved to Australia three years ago while she was expecting her third child. She says it was when she went to see the midwife at an antenatal clinic that she first learned about a pap smear test. She says she remembers her nurse wasn’t quite surprised at her not having had one before.
Zoya remembers, “she said to me then, ‘it is very common among migrant women not to have done one’ as she prepared to do one on me. Now that I know how crucial it is, I feel shocked at the doctors back home to not have mentioned it ever.”
Zoya says she now makes it a point to bring it up when meeting women who have recently migrated from Pakistan to Australia.
Cervical screenings and migrant women
Dr Tabinda Bajwa, who specialises in women’s and mental health and has been practising medicine in Australia for over a decade, agrees with Zoya. She says women from the migrant communities, especially those from the South Asian countries, are hardly aware of the need and importance of cervical screenings and HPV. She takes upon herself the responsibility to educate women and spread awareness.
“I have been associated with the medical profession for over 20 years, and I strongly feel that women do not know enough or at all about how important cervical screenings are for them.”
"Women from migrant communities, especially those from the South Asian countries, are hardly aware of the need and importance of cervical screenings and HPV": Dr Tabinda Bajwa
She says HPV (human papillomavirus) has many strands and some of the high-risk strands can become a cause of cervical cancer in women and throat and, or penile cancer in men. She also mentions the vaccine for HPV that is given to children across Australia in high schools.
“Parents need to ensure that their children are vaccinated against HPV before they become sexually active,” she says, adding that HPV can be transferred from an infected person to another even through skin-to-skin genital touching.
Cultural hurdles?
S*, a Pakistani-Australian, was recently found HPV positive in her cervical screening test results. She says it was a very hard time for her as she could not disclose it to her immediate family due to the taboos and stigmas attached to the virus.
"I had started hating myself for catching this virus although I have never had multiple partners. I was so disturbed and distressed that I had to seek professional help, and I am glad that I did."
Dr Tabinda bursts the myth that HPV only appears in people who have or have had multiple sexual partners. She says HPV can also be found in women or men who may have had only one sexual partner in their lives. These are mostly people who have become sexually active at a younger age, for instance in cultures where people are married at a very young age.
“It is not about cheating or promiscuity. It can just happen because it is so very common,” she says.
She suggests vaccine and keeping a very healthy diet for a stronger immune system to get rid of the virus naturally.
"I had started hating myself for catching this virus although I have never had multiple partners. I was so disturbed and distressed that I had to seek professional help, and I am glad that I did."
“Our bodies fight viruses and get rid of them. That is how our bodies work with viruses. In most cases, our bodies also get rid of HPV in a year or two and for that regular screening is a must.”
However, she strongly suggests that adults with any abnormality, for instance, abnormal discharge, abnormal bleeding or warts and other growths on any part of the body must consult their GP as soon as possible.
To listen to part II of the series on cervical screening, HPV, cervical cancer and vaccination, click here.
*Only initial used to protect identity.
