Mission Possible

Alia Rahman was 22 years old and studying engineering at university when a routine Pap screening revealed abnormalities. Diagnosed with CIN3, the most severe grade of HPV-induced cervical precancer—if left untreated, CIN (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, also known as dysplasia or lesions) can transform cervical cells into invasive cancer—she was advised to undergo laser vapourisation, a procedure that essentially burns off abnormal tissue. The treatment turned out to be particularly uncomfortable, and while it was effective for a few years afterwards, Rahman then began to have consistent abnormalities again, initially at the lowest CIN1 level. When they progressed to CIN2, her gynaecologist suggested loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP), where a wire loop heated by an electric current removes abnormal cells. It was 2016, eight years after the original diagnosis and Rahman…