A new study has found that the first-generation HPV vaccine has cut cervical cancer rates among women by 87%, British researchers reported.
The study, published in The Lancet journal, looked at population-based cancer registry data in the UK between January 2006 and June 2019. The study looked at seven different groups of women, comparing those who were vaccinated and those who were not, CNN reported.
In that time frame, it was estimated that by mid-2019, the vaccine had resulted in 450 fewer cervical cancer and 17,200 fewer cases of pre-cancers than expected in the vaccinated population.
The researchers who conducted the study, from Kings College London and the British government, looked at the Cervarix vaccine. The version of the vaccine protects against two strains of cancer-causing HPV.
The three vaccinated groups were each vaccinated at different ages to obtain as much information as possible. One group got their shot at age 12-13, another at 14-16, and another at 16-18.
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The team found that the group vaccinated at 12-13 was protected more than the other two.
One of the study's co-authors, Dr. Kate Soldan from the UK Health Security Agency, shared with CNN that the study is the first to find the impact of the HPV vaccination campaign in the UK.
"This study provides the first direct evidence of the impact of the UK HPV vaccination campaign on cervical cancer incidence, showing a large reduction in cervical cancer rates in vaccinated cohorts," Soldan said CNN reported.
The doctor continued by saying that "This represents an important step forwards in cervical cancer prevention."
"We hope that these new results encourage uptake as the success of the vaccination program relies not only on the efficacy of the vaccine but also the proportion of the population vaccinated."
