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Member Research & Reports

Member Research & Reports

Kentucky Intervention is Successful in Protecting Appalachian Women from Cervical Cancer

University of Kentucky faculty from the College of Public Health, College of Communication and Information, and Rural Cancer Prevention Center collaborated on the development and implementation of a DVD intervention designed to promote the completion of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination series among young women in Appalachian Kentucky. Their work is funded through the Prevention Research Centers program of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cervical cancer, a disease that is both preventable and screenable, remains a national public health concern, particularly for women in medically underserved communities, such as those in Appalachian Kentucky. The most common prevention strategy is the three-dose HPV vaccine. However, despite the availability of the HPV vaccine, evidence suggests young women are simply not completing the entire vaccination series as recommended for full cervical cancer prevention.