By: Nyima Sillah
The Ministry of Health has renewed its calls to parents to allow their girl children to be immunized against cervical cancer.
Buba Darboe, Program Manager at the Ministry of Health explained that cervical cancer vaccine is different from covid-19 vaccination. He said “cervical cancer vaccination is causing confusion because people are thinking that they are giving Covid-19 vaccines to kids in the school which is not actually the case.”
Cervical cancer vaccination has been going on even before the pandemic so this is a continuation of that exercise, he said.
He explained further that The Gambia is been known for a very good immunization program, “so it is one thing that people should not be scared of, and those parents who had snatched away their children away should bring them back to complete their dozes to protect them from cervical cancer.”
However, Mama Camara, a mother with her short knowledge about the cervical cancer vaccines vowed not to allow her daughter to be vaccinated believing that the vaccines can cause some implications in future “because I am not sure if the vaccine is for cervical cancer or covid-19.”