Our Great Wall of China Trek, is a fantastic Global Health Challenge hiking for five days.  This will take place on 20-28 October 2018

The challenge takes you over ancient watch towers and mountains, through historic battlement stations that are well off the tourist trail – there are many sections during this challenge where you’ll feel the Great Wall will be secluded, and have the magnificent man-made structure all to yourself.

Global health cannot be achieved without alleviating the burden of disease and improving health care for all people.   Our Great Wall of China Trek will raise much-needed funds to support the implementation and evaluation of a HPV (Human Papillomavirus) screening pilot project in Zimbabwe.

HPV is the cause of almost all cervical cancer cases and is responsible for an important fraction of other anogenital and head and neck cancer.  Zimbabwe has a population of 4.68 million women aged 15 years and older who are at risk of developing cervical cancer. Current estimates indicate that every year 2,270 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 1,451 (64%) die from the disease. Cervical cancer ranks as the first most frequent cancer among women in Zimbabwe and the second most frequent cancer among women between the ages of 15 and 44.

This pilot project aims to reduce this mortality rate through the introduction of a screening programme and the training of health workers to build local capacity and sustainability.  Project lead, Dr Maxwell Hove, Chief Government Pathologist with the Public Health Laboratories under the Zimbabwe Ministry of Health and Child Care, has commented:  “cervical cancer is the most common cancer in Zimbabwe, yet it is the most preventable with screening strategies that have been available for decades. Most instruments for HIV viral load testing have the capacity to do HPV testing and are available in the country.  Support is needed to provide cervical sample collection kits, reagents for HPV testing and training so that we can make a real difference to the lives of women and girls in Zimbabwe.

If you are interested in this great challenge and once in a lifetime opportunity, please email [email protected] to book your place.