The Fountain of Life Church Ilupeju and the Save Our Future Foundation, an Ibadan-based organisation held a two-day cervical cancer prevention screening for members of the church and the general public.
The screening which started on Saturday was conducted free for those who could not afford it and subsidised for others with funds provided by the church and some individuals in the church.
The President and founder of the foundation, Cecilia Amotsuka, said that they organised the programme because cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among Nigerian women after breast cancer and that over 600 women of the church indicated interest to participate in the screening.
"Despite the fact that cervical cancer is a great killer of women that can be prevented 100 percent at a very affordable cost, the level of awareness is still very low," Dr. Amotsuka said.
"We are screening and increasing the awareness among women for early detection before it becomes malignant. Our people don't go to the hospital until they are sick."
She said that cervical cancer is caused by a sexually transmitted infection called Human Papilloma Virus which may infect the cervix.
The virus causes slow but abnormal changes in the cervix. The changes, she said, might not show any sign of discomfort till it becomes full cancer.
The change takes from 5 to 20 years to fully become cancer. She advised women to screen themselves every 2-3 years after the first sexual intercourse, and urged the youth to abstain from sex to avoid contracting the Papilloma virus and other sexually transmitted infections.
According to WHO reports, cervical screening is acknowledged as currently the most effective approach for cervical cancer control.
However, WHO says "In many countries, including most middle-income developing countries, the existing programmes are failing to achieve a major impact."
Ogechi Igbokwe, the Hospital Administrator at the Grace Spring Medical Centre, the hospital arm of the church, the church brought the programme to help members of the congregation and the community.
"The church is not just here to preach the word of God; the church also cares for the wellbeing of the congregation and the society. That is why we are telling them that cervical cancer can be prevented if only they know what to do," Mrs. Igbokwe said.
"The church has put in about ₦300,000 to organise the programme, which does not include the cost of facilities and equipment. While it is free for the less privileged, whoever comes here will do the screening for 8000 naira. This test costs about 15,000 naira. We are also doing breast examination along with this."