A 12-year-old girl, Pragya Panchanathan is on a mission to save lives!

Cervical cancer took away 342,000 lives in just one year, lives that could have been saved through timely vaccination, and screening.

Pragya is a student, a keynote speaker, a philanthropist, a podcast host, and passionate about horse riding, boxing, and business. Pragya lives in Dubai with her parents.

Pragya aims to raise awareness about cervical cancer and inspire parents to get their daughters vaccinated. Her goal is to vaccinate 1000 girls in March’2024. She says “Let’s make International Women’s Day meaningful by ensuring all ladies lead healthy lives. Protect your family from the HPV virus; get vaccinations for all female members.”

According to WHO – 

• Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women globally with around 660 000 new cases and around 350 000 deaths in 2022.
• The highest rates of cervical cancer incidence and mortality are in low- and middle-income countries. This reflects major inequities driven by a lack of access to national HPV vaccination, cervical screening and treatment services, and social and economic determinants.
• Cervical cancer is caused by persistent infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV).  Women living with HIV are 6 times more likely to develop cervical cancer compared to women without HIV.
• Prophylactic vaccination against HPV and screening and treatment of pre-cancer lesions are effective strategies to prevent cervical cancer and are very cost-effective.
• Cervical cancer can be cured if diagnosed at an early stage and treated promptly.

Pragya has been dedicated to this cause for a year since receiving her HPV vaccination with her mother. Pragya received 2 dosages while her mother received 3 dosages. Through her research, she discovered that cervical cancer is the 4th most common cancer in women globally, causing 342,000 lives lost to HPV in 2020. She’s faced two main challenges:

• Awareness: Many people lack knowledge about the vaccine’s impact and its preventive benefits.
• Cost: The vaccine isn’t covered by many insurances, making it financially challenging for some.

This year, Pragya reached out to hospitals and clinics, successfully securing privileged prices for cervical cancer consultation, screening, and vaccination. She received a positive response from various hospitals and clinics to join the campaign. She is speaking at various platforms to bring awareness. She recently interviewed a renowned gynaecologist Dr. Anu Bansal to bring awareness about cervical cancer.

Pragya is speaking at various forums and contacting schools to encourage parents to get the vaccination for their children. She is on a big mission at such an early age. 

Pragya has a message for all parents “Save Daughters, Save Families, Save Future”.

She is also asking parents to take a pledge to get all female members of the family vaccinated to prevent cervical cancer. The QR code for the pledge is mentioned below.

Pragya requests all parents to join the movement and spread the word with #savedaughters. Together, we can save many lives. Support the campaign – “Save Daughters.” 🌺

Thank You
Pragya Panchanathan