The Gambia

Go Doc Go first worked in The Gambia in January 2018 at The Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital. We trained midwives and residents in VIA screening and donated a WiSAP Thermal Ablation unit to treat precancerous lesions. We returned in November 2019 along with Youxiang Wang and Xin Chen from Atila Biosystems and brought HPV testing to The Gambia! Along with the Ampfire HPV testing unit, we donated 1000 HPV tests. Go Doc Go returned to The Gambia in February 2022 and donated another 1000 tests and VIA supplies along with a second thermal ablation unit. In May 2023, Go Doc Go again returned to The Gambia with another 1000 HPV tests and a thermal ablation unit for Kanifing Hospital where we held a free VIA and HPV testing clinic. We saw 153 women that day with 7 women treated with thermal ablation and 6 biopsies taken for suspected cancer. Of the 152 women screened that day, 52 tested positive for HR HPV. The HR HPV rate in The Gambia on average is an astonishing 35%. More HPV testing means earlier detection of cervical cancer which means more lives are saved.