Cervical cancer represents a landmark opportunity in global public health as the first human cancer that can be eliminated through coordinated international action. A new special issue of Cancer Biology & Medicine brings together leading experts worldwide to examine progress, challenges, and innovations in prevention, screening, and treatment. This comprehensive collection provides crucial resources for accelerating the World Health Organization's 2030 targets for cervical cancer elimination while advancing women's health equity globally.
The urgency of this effort becomes clear when examining the disease burden. Each year, more than 340,000 women die from cervical cancer, with the majority of deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. Despite being highly preventable through vaccination and early detection, cervical cancer remains the fourth most common cancer among women globally. In 2020, WHO launched the Global Strategy to Accelerate the Elimination of Cervical Cancer, setting ambitious "90-70-90" targets for vaccination, screening, and treatment by 2030. However, significant inequities in health resources, infrastructure, and implementation capacity threaten progress toward these goals.
The special issue, available at https://www.cancerbiomed.org/content/22/9, features ten contributions spanning global perspectives, policy analysis, epidemiology, digital innovation, economic evaluation, and novel therapeutics. Guest-edited by Professor Youlin Qiao of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, the collection highlights global disparities while showcasing China's contributions and the collective scientific innovations needed to accelerate progress. The timing coincides with renewed global attention to women's health at the 2025 World Women's Summit in Beijing.
Notable research includes the first international evaluation of a bilingual digital colposcopy education tool (iDECO), which significantly improves diagnostic accuracy, and the development of a therapeutic multi-epitope protein vaccine targeting HPV16 that demonstrates strong tumor regression in preclinical models. Additional studies examine HPV vaccination willingness under resource inequities, innovative triage algorithms in rural China, and intelligent digital platforms for population-based screening. The economic impact of government-organized programs is also analyzed, providing crucial data for policymakers.
The issue includes critical epidemiological research such as "Cervical cancer burden and trends in China, 2000–2020: Asia-Pacific international comparisons and insights for elimination goals" available at https://doi.org/10.20892/j.issn.2095-3941.2025.0386, which provides essential baseline data for measuring elimination progress. Policy modeling research like "Modeling cervical cancer elimination: a pathway to inform policy decisions" at https://doi.org/10.20892/j.issn.2095-3941.2025.0387 offers evidence-based guidance for resource-sensitive elimination strategies in low- and middle-income countries.
Professor Qiao emphasizes that "Cervical cancer is the only malignancy we can realistically eliminate through vaccination, screening, and early treatment. This special issue demonstrates the collective knowledge and innovation needed to achieve that goal. By combining science, policy, and equity, we can ensure that no woman is left behind in the global drive to eliminate cervical cancer." The elimination effort represents not only a public health objective but also a milestone for gender equity and global health justice, with implications for reducing healthcare disparities and advancing women's rights worldwide.
As the global community works toward this unprecedented achievement, the research provides both a progress report and a call to action. The evidence demonstrates that eliminating cervical cancer is possible within our lifetime, but requires sustained international cooperation, equitable resource distribution, and continued scientific innovation. The journal's mission to bridge cutting-edge oncology research with public health priorities, particularly in women's health, positions this collection as an essential resource for clinicians, researchers, and policymakers committed to making cervical cancer elimination a reality.
