Referencing background information from the Providence partners about the necessity of a cervical cancer screening program in Albania, John Capati, regional coordinator for AIHA's partnerships in Central Europe, cited a 2001 pilot study conducted by the Albanian Association Against Tumors that reported a total abnormal cytology rate of 45.2 percent among the 973 women tested. "In spite of the unusually high incidence of cervical cancer among Albanian women, early detection of this disease was unlikely because of the limited presence of screening programs," explained Capati.

Noting that this data evidenced a need to develop comprehensive diagnostic programs, Capati stressed the role of the partnership in making such a program accessible and affordable for patients while at the same time educating the public about the benefits of early detection and treatment.

To help Albanians detect cervical cancer at the disease's earliest and most treatable stages, the Tirana/Providence partners focused on establishing an adequate infrastructure to provide the necessary diagnostic capability. Within this project, partners inaugurated Albania's first in-country cytology/pathology laboratory, which—since its opening on the premises of Maternity Hospital #1 in September 2002—has read more than 1,500 pap smears and conducted approximately 400 biopsies. The partners also initiated a record-keeping registry and patient identification numbering system to keep better track of women tested for cervical cancer. Additionally, the Albanian medical specialists were trained by their Providence counterparts in pap smear collection, cytology screening, lab management, and the LEEP system, which is used to treat cervical dysplasia. Cooperatively, partners developed clinical protocols for collecting pap smears and designed Albanian-language public awareness brochures and posters to encourage cervical cancer screening.

Rubena Moisiu, Director of Tirana Maternity Hospital No. 1, Vjollca Tare, Director, Tirana WWC, and Wendy Guida, National Perinatal Information Center in Providence, during one of the cervical cancer workshop's sessions. (Photo: John Capati)

According to Rubena Moisiu, the Director of Maternity Hospital #1, through raising public awareness and via partner-supported community education programs, the number of pap smears being done in should continue to rise. Her American colleague Carol Debek, associate vice president for patient care services at Rhode Island’s Women and Infants Hospital, supports this point of view telling the workshop participants that, “The healthcare professionals should make an effort to help women become responsible for their health, and encourage the patients to spread the word about cervical cancer in their communities.”

During the workshop, participants observed the progress of the cervical screening program in Albania; learned about risk factors and screening and management techniques; and discussed ways to raise public awareness about, and thereby ensure timely detection of, the disease. The event received widespread media coverage, which should help increase public knowledge about the need to have a pap smear and direct women to appropriate medical settings. In addition, the Providence partners will continue to educate personnel from four of Tirana's policlinics and to involve them in the program as a means to create more effective screening capacity in the country.