Protecting Adolescent Girls Today, Preventing Cancer Tomorrow

Muso is expanding the application of its Rapid Care model to address an urgent public health challenge: improving HPV vaccination coverage among adolescent girls. This quarter, our team launched an innovative approach in Mali and Côte d'Ivoire that is being evaluated through a study involving more than 17,000 eligible girls across four implementation sites. The approach combines the reach of ProCHWs, digital tools, and community engagement to ensure more girls receive this lifesaving intervention while generating evidence on how best to reach adolescents with preventive health services. 

Adolescent girls in Madinani

Cervical cancer is one of the few cancers that can be eliminated through vaccination, screening, and early treatment. Yet 94% of cervical cancer deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries, where many girls still face barriers to receiving the HPV vaccine. Critical challenges include: reaching eligible adolescents, particularly those who are out of school, addressing vaccine hesitancy, engaging parents, and ensuring timely follow-up.

To address these barriers, Muso has adapted the proactive outreach and follow-up strategies that underpin its Rapid Care model to adolescent vaccination.

With door-to-door home visits, ProCHWs identify eligible girls, verify vaccination status, connect families with health facilities, and follow up with girls who have not yet received the vaccine. Digital tools and real-time data visualization enable health workers to find and connect eligible girls, conduct proactive follow-up visits, and monitor progress. 

Conducted from April to September 2026, the randomized study will generate rigorous evidence on whether proactive community follow-up can improve HPV vaccination coverage and inform strategies for future scale-up. 

By adapting its community-based care to reach adolescent girls with HPV vaccination, Muso is demonstrating how proactive, data-driven approaches can strengthen preventative care -building healthier futures for girls, women, and the communities they will one day lead.