A forum held Monday at the Wisconsin Historical Society urged students to raise awareness about human papilloma virus, a disease speakers warned will afflict nearly every woman within her lifetime. HPV, the lead cause of cancer, will affect 12,000 women yearly, speakers added.

The forum, sponsored by the Multicultural Greek Council and the University of Wisconsin-Madison Panhellenic Association featured state Sen. Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee, and cervical cancer survivor Tamika Felder.

"I want people to really understand their bodies," Felder said.

Felder was diagnosed at 25 with cervical cancer, an affliction that is caused 99.9 percent of the time by HPV.

A cancer survivor of five years this June, Felder emphasized that HPV knowledge is important even though few doctors test for the virus as part of the annual Pap smears.

"Every woman in this room, if you've ever had sex, at some point in your life you will have HPV," Felder said.

She informed the audience that women contract the virus through sexual intercourse from men who carry it. Additionally, condoms cannot completely protect against HPV because it is transferred by skin-to-skin contact, Felder added.

But she did promote condoms usage because although they do not prevent HPV, they can help protect against HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.

Practicing abstinence is the only effective way to prevent the contraction of HPV, she noted.

"Don't go running around having sex," Taylor urged.

Despite her advice, Taylor admitted that abstinence is an unrealistic expectation for most college students today. The best thing to do is obtain and spread knowledge of the virus, she added.

Taylor also said Wisconsin is one of the worst states for cervical cancer awareness, emphasizing a need for change.

"I'm encouraging [students] to not only be a partner in your health care but to be active in the political process as well," Taylor said.

She noted Wisconsin is one of the top states in the nation in terms of voter turnout among college-aged citizens and this demographic trend can be used to increase awareness and change.

According to Taylor, there is currently a vaccine that, if available, would prevent all cases of cervical cancer caused by HPV. She added 3,700 people die each year of cervical cancer.

Taylor said she wishes to make the cervical cancer vaccination available with all other vaccinations that the law requires.

"The part that amazes me the most is that with the vaccination there could be zero [deaths]," Taylor said.

Also speaking at the forum was a nurse practitioner from the Campus Women's Center, Beth Bruckbauer, who said that 50 percent of sexually active women on campus will contract HPV.

She said that University Health Services does offer HPV testing, but not as part of the standard STD and Pap smear testing that women come in for.

Women must request the HPV test, recently approved of by the FDA in 2003, she added.

"What I am telling you if you've had more than one sexually active partner or your partner has had more than one, get the test," Felder stressed.

Felder started an organization called Tamika and Friends that aims to raise awareness and offers the HPV test to women if their insurance company will not provide for it.

Taylor added that women must be a part of their health care in order to keep themselves protected.

"Don't be scared, don't panic, be informed," Felder said.