By: Danielle Ulman

Today I got a package at work with these words printed on the front: “To prevent cervical cancer, open this box.”

Inside I found a bottle of white distilled vinegar and cotton swabs. Huh?

Turns out, January is cervical cancer awareness month, and cervical cancer is the No. 1 cause of cancer death for women in the developing world. While Pap tests have lowered the U.S. mortality rate by 70 percent, about 95 percent of women in developing nations don’t have access to the test.

Enter Jhpiego (pronounced ja-pie-go), an international nonprofit health organization associated with Johns Hopkins University. The group is working to save the lives of women in South America, Southeast Asia and Africa through a visual inspection of the cervix that consists of vinegar, cotton swabs and a flashlight.

Sounds pretty elementary for such a complex disease, but it’s been working for Jhpiego.

A basic health worker is trained to compare a patient’s cervix with photos of a diseased cervix. The worker is trained to use cryotherapy to freeze the cells if any precancerous cells are discovered. With one visit, a woman can be screened and treated. All at 1/50 the cost of a Pap.

Now if only this bottle of vinegar and these cotton swabs were doing some good in Africa rather than sitting on my desk.