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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
RECOGNIZING JANUARY 2025 AS CERVICAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH IN COOK COUNTY
WHEREAS, the United States Congress designated January as Cervical Health Awareness Month; and
WHEREAS, cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women globally with an estimated 660,000 new cases and 350,000 deaths in 2022, according to the World Health Organization (WHO); and
WHEREAS, the American Cancer Society's estimates for cervical cancer in the United States for 2024 are approximately 13,820 new cases of invasive cervical cancer will be diagnosed and about 4,360 women will die as a result of this diagnosis, but the disease is preventable with vaccination and appropriate screening such as Pap and HPV tests; and
WHEREAS, like many diseases, racial disparities are troubling for cervical cancer, where the death rate is 65% higher in Black women than in White women, even though both groups self-report similar screening efforts, accordingly in Illinois, cervical cancer incidence and mortality rates are highest in Black and Latina women and lowest in White women; and
WHEREAS, human papillomavirus (HPV) is the #1 cause of cervical cancer; however, HPV vaccines can help prevent infection from both high-risk HPV types that can lead to cervical cancer and low risk types that cause genital warts; and
WHEREAS, the CDC recommends all boys and girls get the HPV vaccine at age 11 or 12, but vaccination is available through age 26; and
WHEREAS, the vaccine produces a stronger immune response when taken during the preteen years, and it is for this reason that up until age 14, only two doses of the vaccine are required; and
WHEREAS, young women and men can get the vaccine up to age 26, but for those 15 and older, a full three-dose series is needed; and
WHEREAS, women of color are disproportionally affected by cervical cancer with Black and Latina women nearly three times more likely to die of cervical cancer than white women in Chicago; and
WHEREAS, accor...
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