January 27, 2026 | 08:17 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia will offer free cervical cancer screening as part of the government’s free health check program, expanding early detection efforts through both Pap smear tests and HPV DNA laboratory examinations, the Health Ministry said.
Director of Non-Communicable Disease Control at the Ministry of Health, Siti Nadya Tarmizi, said the inclusion of HPV DNA testing marks a major step forward in cervical cancer prevention.
“The HPV DNA test for cervical cancer will be provided free of charge,” Nadya said at a press conference on the national dissemination of the Cervical Screening Pilot Project at the Health Ministry in Jakarta on Tuesday, January 27, 2026.
Previously, cervical cancer screening in Indonesia relied mainly on Pap smears, which examine cervical cell samples to detect early signs of precancerous changes or cancer.
The Health Ministry is now encouraging community health centers to also offer HPV DNA testing, which can detect high-risk HPV infections before symptoms appear.
“We are instructing community health centers to provide HPV DNA screening as part of the free health check program, alongside breast cancer screening,” Nadya said.
HPV DNA testing identifies genetic material from high-risk Human Papillomavirus types, particularly HPV-16 and HPV-18, which are responsible for most cervical cancer cases. By detecting infection earlier, the test allows for faster intervention before cancer develops.
According to the Health Ministry, cervical cancer accounts for 16.3 percent of cancer cases in Indonesia, with a mortality rate of 60 to 70 percent, making it the country’s second deadliest cancer among women. Nadya emphasized that unlike many other cancers, cervical cancer is largely preventable.
“Many cancers cannot be eliminated, but cervical cancer can be prevented and eliminated if we act quickly,” she said.
Despite this, the disease continues to affect around 36,000 women each year in Indonesia and causes an estimated 21,000 deaths, meaning nearly three out of five women diagnosed do not survive.
Cervical cancer is primarily caused by HPV infection, which is transmitted through sexual contact. Risk factors include early sexual activity, multiple partners, smoking, and weakened immune systems.
To reduce cases, the Health Ministry has launched a National Action Plan for Cervical Cancer Elimination 2023–2030, built on three pillars: nationwide HPV vaccination, expanded HPV DNA and visual inspection screening, and improved early treatment services.
The government aims to vaccinate 90 percent of girls against HPV and screen 75 percent of women aged 30 to 69 by 2030.
So far, early cervical cancer screening has reached around 1.7 million women nationwide. In Jakarta alone, about 666,000 women were screened in 2025.
However, Nadya said coverage remains well below the national target, underscoring the need for wider participation.
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