CCC Graduates 20 Trained Cryotherapy Nurses in Western Kenya, Moves on to Continue Mission! 

CCC Graduates 20 Trained Cryotherapy Nurses in Western Kenya, Moves on to Continue Mission! 
This emotion filled graduation took place October 24th, 2015 at Kissi Level 5 Hospital. As Founding Director and Board Chair of CCC, I write this with full humility and pride. I have enormous gratitude for those both abroad and here in Western Kenya who have helped us achieve our goal. After a year of long planning with our ground partner, IMC, the CCC team leaves Kisii knowing we have accomplished our lofty and extraordinary task. We have left behind 20 fully trained cryotherapy nurses (pictured above), who largely work for International Medical Corps and the Ministry of Health. We have established 9 sustainable and permanent CureCervicalCancer centers that will continue to screen and treat women for pre-cancerous lesions for years and years to come. Thousands and thousands of lives will be saved. It is a well-known fact that in Western Kenya the leading cause of death for women with cancer is cervical cancer. Rates are extraordinarily high, and the disease is 100% preventable with this simple yet elegant technique. We have now provided the knowledge and equipment of this technique to eight centers to continue our efforts long after we have left this region. This week has been highlighted by a reception from the Governor and Deputy Governor of Kisii County, as well as the Minister of Health (pictured is my demonstration of cryotherapy for the Governor).  pat 3 This is significant because the local Kisii Governor and Ministry of Health officials are acutely aware of the extraordinary risk of death from this entirely curable epidemic in the region. IMC’s ground support was stellar in their mobilization efforts. They provided enormous help here locally in Kisii, as well as providing us advice and ground support, flying in from the United States and Nairobi. It was a tremendously busy week screening nearly 900 women and treating approximately 171 positive cases (about 19% of the women) with cryotherapy. This was by far the highest percentage of positively tested women for precancerous lesions we have ever encountered, thereby making this week even more necessary and important. I speak for the entire CCC Kenya team when I say that we are not only proud and fulfilled (and honestly a bit exhausted), but we continue to remain grateful and appreciative that we were able to spearhead these sustainable projects. We say goodbye to Kisii County knowing that IMC, the Ministry of Health, as well as our full-time employed CCC Kenya nurse, Ephel Achero RN, will support and continue to educate all of the new clinics we have established. Nurse Ephel will be rotating throughout Kenya to support, reeducate, and resupply all of our 14 CureCervicalCancer Kenya clinics. The team moves onward to the Transmara region to resupply and reeducate our clinic partners in Engos, Kenya. This will be followed by a return to Kisumu County, where we have been asked to conduct further education and resupply our 4 sustainable clinics. The CCC full-time nurse, Ephel, will continue to join us throughout our mission and we welcome her as a permanent member of our staff! A heartfelt, warm thank you to all of you who have shown us generous support and allowed this ambitious project to be the success it has been. I can confidently say that the 9 clinics in Western Kenya will continue to thrive. We look forward to return and expand on our existing programs! Warmly, Patricia Gordon MD CureCervicalCancer Board Chair and Founding Director