As the leading cancer killer of women in developing countries, cervical cancer accounts for more than a quarter million deaths each year, more than 50% of cases occur within the Asian-Pacific region, which can be prevented by appropriate interventions. Therefore, in 2005, we have developed an expert multi-disciplinary group within the region and along the lines of European Research Organization on Genital Infection and Neoplasia (EUROGIN)/European Course on HPV Associated Pathology Virus (ECHPV), as developed for Europe and, more recently, Latin America. The Asia Oceania research organization on Genital Infections & Neoplasia (AOGIN) works with health care workers as well as the lay public, particularly those in women's health with the goals of collaboration and research, scientific exchanges, education and training, providing information, surveys, and audits. AOGIN brings together clinicians and scientists whose work is related to genital infections and neoplasia.
AOGIN's vision is to reduce the burden of disease caused by reproductive tract infections, especially human papillomavirus (HPV), in the Asia, Oceania and Pacific region. Furthermore, AOGIN's mission is to work with governments, nongovernmental organizations, learned societies, health care workers and the lay public, to communicate, cooperate and share information and tools in order to reduce the burden of disease caused by reproductive tract infections, especially HPV, in the Asia, Oceania, and Pacific region.
The theme for the 6th Biennial Conference was "Comprehensive Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control in the Asia Pacific Region." From 25th to 27th April 2014, 561 health professionals from 31 countries/areas all over the world attended the 6th Biennial AOGIN Conference in Beijing, organized by Cancer Institute/Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Cancer Foundation of China, with strong support from international and local professional societies as well as from various industry groups. Seventy-seven international and regional renowned medical scientists and healthcare professionals have been invited to talk on preclinical explorations of disease mechanisms, clinical outcomes research, population burden of cervical lesions, and evidence-based strategies for screening and HPV vaccination.
Two parallel Pre-Conference Workshops were held on April 25, 2014: (1) Cytology/Pathology Workshop, coordinated by Dr. Annie Cheung and Dr. Qin-Jing Pan: state-of-the-art knowledge of cytology/pathology have been expounded including the advanced cytology in cervical cancer screening, application of last recommendation in routine evaluation of cervical lesions, the performance of p16/Ki-67 immunostaining on liquid based cytology for cervical cancer screening, the clinical significance of atypical glandular cells-cytohistological correlation, the present situation and challenges of cytology quality control, and cervical cancer screening after introduction of HPV vaccines, at the end there was a case review by slides show for how to avoid pitfalls in Pap smear; (2) Colposcopy Workshop, coordinated by Dr. Jeffrey Tan and Dr. Long Sui: the training started from understanding developing squamo-columnar junction and transformation zone, followed by a series of topics of when and how to do a colposcopic examination, recent management of abnormalities in cervical neoplasia, quality control of colposcopic clinic, ablation therapy and surgical excision of cervix, and where is the future for colposcopist, and ended by a practical training on colposcopy, electrosurgical procedures by video show.
The main conference was honored by the presence of Dr. Douglas Lowy, deputy director of National Cancer Institute at the National Institute of Health (NCI/NIH) of the United States, as well as an inventor of papillomavirus L1 virus-like particle vaccine technologies, who gave an enlightening keynote speech titled "Reducing HPV-Associated Cancer Globally" on opening ceremony, sharing innovative ideas regarding the comprehensive cervical cancer control, which including vaccination for primary prevention, screening for secondary prevention, surgical and medical treatment of pre-cancer and cancer, and palliation for patients whose cancers cannot be cured. The conference had 14 plenary sessions and two sponsored luncheon symposiums, covering topics from epidemiology and carcinogenesis to prevention and management of cervical cancer. NCI has two symposiums during the conference. One was about "Evaluation and Follow up in Cervical Cancer Screening Programs" organized by Center for Global Health, shared international experiences and procedures for evaluation and follow-up after abnormal results in cervical cancer screening programs, identified the barriers and facilitators for ensuring appropriate evaluation and follow-up after abnormal results in cervical cancer screening programs, and also discussed strategies, framework, and considerations in various countries to prioritize evaluation and follow-up after abnormal results in cervical cancer screening programs. The other was organized by Division of Cancer Prevention, discussing "Cancer Immunoprevention: Current Status and Future Directions for Cervical Cancer Prevention." The current state of the science for HPV vaccines, the progress of cancer immunoprevention approaches and the future and special emphasis on strategies in developing countries were discussed between speakers and audiences. Dr. Nathalie Broutet presented the updated World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for screening and treatment of precancerous lesions for cervical cancer prevention on the symposium organized by WHO. Dr. Sankar shared recent experiences in scaling up HPV vaccination and cervical screening in low- and middle-income countries on the symposium sponsored by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. The International Society for the Study of Vulvovaginal Disease and the International Federation for Cervical Pathology and Colposcopy sponsored a symposium addressing the treatment and prevention of condyloma and vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia/vaginal intraepithelial neoplasia.
With 10 years efforts, AOGIN has become a worldwide forum for clinicians, scientists, healthcare providers, policy makers, and industry representatives. Most importantly, with a broad vision it has raised awareness of HPV related diseases, identified current gaps in practices and policies, and discussed state-of-arts advances in major related areas with an emphasis on translation of research outcomes into clinical practice in cervical cancer control in this region. The next biennial conference will be held in Singapore in 2016.