The test will be available free of charge at state hospitals nationwide. Women aged 30 to 45 are advised to get a Pap test and visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA), while women aged between 40 and 60 are advised to get the Pap test, named for Georgios Papanikolaou, the Greek doctor who invented it.

“Early detection would help woman access treatment and reduce the mortality rate,” Public Health Minister Jurin Laksanawisit told a press conference.

The ministry’s campaign will be five years in duration, from 2011 to 2015.

Cervical cancer is the country’s second leading cause of cancer death after breast cancer. the morbidity rate of cervical cancer is 18.1 per 100,000 population.

Cervical cancer is caused by infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV). the early stages of the cancer may be completely asymptomatic. Vaginal bleeding may indicate the presence of malignancy. Also moderate pain during sexual intercourse and vaginal discharge are symptoms of cervical cancer. In advanced disease, metastases may be present in the abdomen, lungs or elsewhere.

Symptoms of advanced cervical cancer may include loss of appetite, weight loss, fatigue, pelvic pain, back pain, leg pain, a single swollen leg, heavy bleeding from the vagina, leaking of urine and bone fractures.

Pap smear screening and VIA can identify potentially pre-cancerous changes. Treatment of high-grade changes can prevent the development of cancer.