HPV vaccine eliminates 90% of cervical cancer cases

The HPV vaccine is now citing cases for cervical cancer nearly 90%, as per the data. Cancer Research UK described the findings as a historical one. It said that it is showing that the vaccine is saving lives.

Nearly all cervical cancers are caused due to viruses. There is a hope that vaccination can eliminate this disease. The researchers have said that success means middle-income that those who get vaccinated may need fewer cervical smear tests. Cervical cancer is one of the most common types among women around the world. It kills more than 300000 people each year.

Nearly nine-in-10 deaths in low and middle-income countries take place due to little access to screening cervical cancer. The hope is, this vaccination will even have a bigger impact in those countries than the wealthier nations.

At least more than 100 countries have started using the vaccination as part of the plan of WHO to eliminate this type of cancer.

In the UK, girls can receive the vaccine between the age range of 11 and 13 based on where they live. A study published in Lancet took a look at what happened when the vaccine introduced to girls in England in 2008. Those girls are now adults in their 20s. The study shows that there is a reduction in both cervical cancer and pre-cancerous growth.

The impact is huge. The reduction was less dramatic when the teenager got immunized as part of this catch-up campaign. This happened as older teenagers decided to take the vaccine before becoming active sexually.

Overall, this study has estimated that the HPV program has prevented nearly 450 cancers and 17200 pre-cancer cases.

The physicians are inviting women for a smear test every three to five years to further screen for cervical cancer.

But Prof Sasieni thinks there is a need to rethink after the results.

He said: “It should be a wake-up call to policy-makers; women will read this and think, ‘why should I go for screening?’.

This is not the final say about HPV vaccination. There are still some questions about how long its action will last. There are more than 100 types of papillomavirus. The UK has already started using the vaccine that is protecting against two of them. The country is about to introduce one that can protest against nine further viruses that also include the one responsible for genital warts.

Michelle Mitchell, the chief executive at Cancer Research UK, said that it is a historic moment to see that there is a success with the HPV vaccine, and it will continue to protect thousands of people.

Credits: BBC