Cervical cancer is the most frequent female malignancy in most developing countries. Previous studies have demonstrated a strong association of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection with dysplasia and carcinoma of the uterine cervix. The objective of this study was to identify the prevailing HPV genotypes responsible for the development of cervical cancer among women in Ethiopia and the Sudan. A molecular characterization of HPV was done on 245 paraffin embedded cervical biopsy samples collected from the two countries. Amplification of HPV and subsequent genotyping was done using SPF10 primers and Line probe assay. Of samples collected from Ethiopian patients, 93% (149/160) and 13% (21/160) had high risk and low risk HPV genotypes, respectively. Among samples collected from the Sudan, 94% (80/85) harbored high risk and 11.7% (10/85) low risk HPV genotypes. Human papillomavirus 16 was the most frequent genotype identified in samples from Ethiopia (91%, 136/149) and the Sudan (82.5%, 66/80). HPV 52, 58, and 18 were the second, third and fourth common genotypes identified in Ethiopia, whereas HPV 18, 45, and 52 were the second, third, and fourth genotypes identified in samples collected from the Sudan. Thus, individuals living in different geographical localities should receive vaccines based on the specific genotypes circulating in the area and a vaccine targeting HPV 16, 18, 45, 52, and 58 may be optimal for the control of cervical cancer in the two countries.

Cancer is a disease in which the cell's natural division mechanisms, which are regulated by its genetic material (DNA), are disrupted.Viruses, chemical carcinogens, chromosomal rearrangement, tumour suppressor genes, and spontaneous transformation have all been linked to cancer (Anwar et al., 2020). Cancer claimed the lives of 8.9 million people worldwide in 2017, according to the World Health Organization.This figure is projected to increase to 12.0 million by 2030. One of three factors can lead to cancer:a poor diet, a genetic predisposition, or environmental exposure. In the case of lung cancer, a bad diet is responsible for at least 35% of all cancers worldwide, with the addition of alcohol and cigarettes increasing the figure to 60%. A hereditary predisposition to cancer accounts for around 20% of cancer cases, leaving the majority of cancers to be caused by a number of environmental carcinogens (Rehm et al., 2020).

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