(PTI Photo)
NEW DELHI: As India races to vaccinate 1.15 crore girls against cervical cancer under its recently launched HPV immunisation programme, a major study from England has reported a striking outcome: zero cervical cancer deaths among women aged 20-24 years over the past five years in cohorts that received the vaccine as adolescents.The findings, published in The Lancet, provide the strongest evidence yet that HPV vaccination not only prevents cervical cancer but can also dramatically reduce deaths from the disease. Researchers estimated that the vaccination programme prevented nearly 200 cervical cancer deaths in England by the end of 2024.Among women aged 20-24 years, where vaccine coverage reached around 88-90%, no cervical cancer deaths were recorded between 2020 and 2024. Based on historical trends, researchers estimated that more than 23 deaths would have been expected in the absence of vaccination.The study analysed national mortality data from 2001 to 2024 and linked the sharp decline in deaths to England’s HPV vaccination programme, introduced in 2008 for girls aged 12-13 years. Researchers found mortality reductions of 100% among vaccinated women aged 20-24 years and 25-29 years. Before the HPV vaccination campaign, around 20 deaths every year were being recorded in that age groupThe findings come at a crucial time for India, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the nationwide HPV vaccination drive on February 28. Government data show nearly 50 lakh vaccine doses have already been administered to girls aged 9-14 years, against a target cohort of about 1.15 crore. Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat have achieved 100% of their target coverage, while Mizoram has reached around 93%.India bears one of the world’s highest cervical cancer burdens, recording an estimated 1.25 lakh new cases and more than 75,000 deaths annually. Health experts say the English experience offers a glimpse of the long-term impact India could achieve if high vaccine coverage is sustained.”England has shown that high HPV vaccination coverage can significantly reduce cervical cancer incidence and deaths. India can substantially cut its future cervical cancer burden, but vaccination must go hand in hand with HPV DNA screening, early diagnosis and timely treatment. Achieving the WHO 90-70-90 targets remains critical for cervical cancer elimination,” said Dr Abhishek Shankar from AIIMS radiation oncology.”The substantial decrease in cervical cancer deaths observed among women aged 20-29 years, particularly among those vaccinated at ages 12-13 years, shows that the goal of eliminating cervical cancer as a public health problem is achievable,” the study authors said.
