HPV Vaccines Found 83% Effective

Researchers found that 8 years following introduction of the HPV vaccine, the vaccine decreased the occurence of HPV by 71% in 14- to 19-year-olds.

Researchers from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) based their findings on HPV prevalence based on self-collected cervicovaginal swabs collected as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHNES).

Earlier studies have already confirmed benefits of the vaccine, and the latest study, published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, reviewed possible herd protection and cross-protection against other strains.

In the US population, researchers saw a significant decline (34%) in the vaccine HPV types in unvaccinated women. This data suggests herd protection, another consequence of rising vaccine coverage.

Moreover, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that HPV vaccines should be incorporated into a “coordinated and comprehensive strategy.”

In the WHO Position Paper, the authors note that this strategy will include the following components:

• Education on behaviors that might increase HPV risk
• Training healthcare workers and providing critical information to women regarding screening, diagnosis, and treatment of precancerous legions and cancer
• Increasing access to screening and treatment (as well as treatment for invasive cancer)

Although vaccination will serve as a “primary preventive intervention,” the WHO authors note that, later on in their lives, individuals will still need to go for screening, “since the existing vaccines do not protect against all high-risk HPV types and will have limited impact on disease in women older than the vaccine eligible group(s).”

Dr. Julieta Barroeta, lead author of the Diagnostic Cytopathology Review said, “The full effect of HPV vaccinations as a cancer prevention strategy may not be fully evident for decades, given the slow progression from HPV infection, to the development of cervical cancer.”

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a vaccine called Gardasil 9, which protects against 9 HPV types and can prevent about 90 percent of cervical, vulvar, vaginal and anal cancers.

This Merck vaccine is approved for use in females and males aged 9 to 26.

Gardasil 9 is not a treatment for HPV disease or cervical cancer, noted Marion Gruber, director of the FDA's Office of Vaccines Research and Review.

Cervical cancer presents a significant global health burden, with an estimated 266,000 deaths and 528,000 new cases worldwide recorded in 2012.

According to the FDA, each HPV shot costs $130 to $150, for a total of $390 to $450 for the series. Some providers also charge a fee to administer the shots. HPV vaccination is included in the Vaccines for Children Program for boys and girls up to the age of 18.

The CDC Vaccine Price Lists provide current vaccine contract prices and list the private sector vaccine prices for general information.

WHO also suggests linking HPV vaccination with other vaccinations, such as tetanus, typically administered at the same age.

On a global scale, WHO calls for “all countries to proceed with nationwide introduction of HPV vaccination.”