Perceptions of cervical cancer and motivation for screening among women in Rural Lilongwe, Malawi: A qualitative study.

Despite limited knowledge of cervical cancer and misconceptions of screening, the concept of screening for prevention, desire to know one's health status, convenient access, and peers' influence were motivators for participation in screening. Cervical cancer screen-and-treat programs in high HIV prevalence areas should consider utilizing language that parallels HIV prevention language to communicate the need for cervical cancer screening and treatment and utilize prevention concepts that may already be familiar to women living there.