1. Introduction
The burden of cervical cancer in Southeast Asia is moderately
high, where the costs of nationwide organized cytology screening
have been a significant limitation. The use of Pap testing for
cytology-based screening has been highly effective in preventing
cervical cancer in industrialized countries and will most likely be
effective in countries where screening is limited or nonexistent.
Hence, the use of alternative screening modalities, such as visual
inspection of the cervix aided by acetic acid (VIA) with or without
magnification, is currently under evaluation. In addition, prophylactic
human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination for the prevention
of infection and related disease is being considered as an additional
cervical cancer control strategy.