Of the 17,500 cases of uterine cancer reported yearly in Japan, nearly half are cervical cancer, usually triggered by a virus spread by sexual intercourse. Because of this, sufferers often conceal the fact from friends and families and continue working at their jobs as if nothing is wrong — until pain and exhaustion catch up.
Yet who can blame women for their silence? Cervical cancer comes with a social stigma and, once the secret is out, a woman's chances for marriage, career stability and social respect could well be destroyed overnight.
Director Yasuyuki Ebihara's first feature film, "Inochi no Call: Mrs. Inga wo Shitte Imasuka?" ("Lifeline: Do You Know Mrs. Inga?"), tells the tale of a young woman who is newly married and in the clutches of cervical cancer.