How The Vaccine Is Administered
Between ages 9 and 15, two shots of HPV vaccine are required, administered six months apart from age 15 on, three shots are needed. Side effects are usually mild, like pain or swelling at the injection site and perhaps brief fever, fatigue, nausea or muscle pain. The vaccines cost is nearly always covered by insurance.
Dr. Sonawane said parental misconceptions about the vaccines safety are commonplace, and doctors rarely have the time to debunk vaccine misinformation parents find online. Positive information about vaccines doesnt get posted on social media, she observed.
Some parents fear that immunizing their children against HPV will encourage them to engage in sexual activity, although there is no evidence this happens. Dr. Aragones, among others, suggested that the best way for doctors to minimize parental opposition is to describe the vaccines anticancer role, limit discussing the link to sexual activity and include the immunization with the other vaccines that are routinely given to adolescents.
Indian Scenario Of Hpv Infection
Cervical cancer is ranked as the most frequent cancer in women in India. India has a population of approximately 365.71 million women above 15 years of age, who are at risk of developing cervical cancer. The current estimates indicate approximately 132,000 new cases diagnosed and 74,000 deaths annually in India, accounting to nearly 1/3rd of the global cervical cancer deaths. Indian women face a 2.5% cumulative lifetime risk and 1.4% cumulative death risk from cervical cancer. At any given time, about 6.6% of women in the general population are estimated to harbor cervical HPV infection. HPV serotypes 16 and 18 account for nearly 76.7% of cervical cancer in India. Warts have been reported in 225% of sexually transmitted disease clinic attendees in India however, there is no data on the burden of anogenital warts in the general community. There are currently several cervical cancer research programmes in India. The National cancer registry programme, established by the Indian council of medical research, acts as a surveillance system for cancer in India. It collects data in an active manner, visiting government and private sector hospitals, specialized cancer hospitals and pathology laboratories to get information on the types and magnitude of cancer cases. The cancer registry in India does not cover the entire country actively but collects information only from a few urban and rural registries established in the country.
The Impact Of The Hpv Programme
In clinical trials, the HPV vaccine was over 99% effective at preventing pre-cancer caused by HPV types 16 or 18 in young women, which are linked to 70% of cervical cancers. It is estimated that by 2058 after 50 years of this vaccination programme, 64,000 cervical cancers and 50,000 other cancers will have been prevented.
The World Health Organization have declared a global strategy to eliminate cervical cancer completely, through vaccination and cervical screening. It is important that women who have been vaccinated continue to take up the offer of cervical smear testing later in life, so that other kinds of cervical cancer can be picked up.
HPV vaccine programmes around the world are currently being evaluated. Evidence from a recent study of 66 million young men and women showed an 83% reduction in high-risk HPV in teenage girls, and 66% reduction in women aged 20-24. The study also showed precancerous cervical lesions declined by 51% in teenage girls and 31% in women up to age 24 30298-3/fulltext” rel=”nofollow”> Analysis of HPV Vaccine Effectiveness).
In the graph below, the prevalence of high-risk HPV types 16 and 18 has reduced with the increasing number of women who have received the vaccine in England. Studies have shown that protection against HPV lasts at least 10 years, and this is expected to be long-term. More information about how the vaccine works is below.
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The Difference The Hpv Vaccine Has Made So Far
Over 80 million people have received the vaccine worldwide.
In the time it is expected that the vaccine will save hundreds of lives every year in the UK. A recent Scottish study has already shown a 71% reduction in pre-cancerous cervical disease in young women.
Ten years since the start of the vaccination programme in the UK, there has been a big decline in HPV infections and in the number of young people with genital warts.
Dangers Of Hpv Infection

Cervical cancer. This is a malignancy of the lowest part of your uterus, called the cervix. Cervical cancer is one of the most frequent cancers of women. Infection with a high-risk type of HPV is necessary for this cancer to occur. But, not all women with such infections develop cervical cancer.
Other Anogenital Cancers. The same high-risk HPV types also cause cancers of the vulva, vagina, penis, and anus.
Oropharyngeal cancers. Cancers of the tongue, tonsils, and throat.
Anogenital warts. These are considered the result of sexually transmitted disease. The warts appear around the anal and genital areas some months after infection.
Cervical cancer is the fourth most frequent cancer among women. HPV is responsible for 99% of cervical cancers, 90% of anal cancers, 65% of vaginal cancers, 50% of vulvar cancers, and 45% to 90% of oropharyngeal cancers.
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Administration Of Hpv Vaccine
The HPV vaccine is given as an injection into a muscle in a 2-dose or a 3-dose series. If the initial dose of the HPV vaccination is given at age 9 to 14 years, a 2-dose series is given. If the initial dose of the HPV vaccination is given at age 15 years or older, a 3-dose series is given .
The vaccine is recommended for
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All males and females at age 11 or 12 and previously unvaccinated or not adequately vaccinated people through age 26 years
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All adults age 27 to 45 years after discussing with their doctor whether they should be vaccinated
If people have a temporary illness, doctors usually wait to give the vaccine until the illness resolves .
Fact : The Hpv Vaccine Is For Boys And Girls
The HPV vaccine is strongly recommended for boys and girls. It can help protect them from infection with the most common types of HPV that can cause cancer when they get older. HPV is so common that almost everyone will come in contact with it at some point in their lives.
Most HPV infection goes away without any health problems. However, there is no way to know when it wont and an infection could lead to cancer. Vaccinating your child against HPV helps protect them.
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How Can I Prevent Hpv
Vaccines are available that can protect against the most common types of HPV that cause cancer. The Canadian Cancer Society recommends that Canadians get vaccinated to reduce their risk of HPV-related cancer.
Get vaccinated or have your children vaccinated through school-based programs where available. If you are not eligible for a free vaccination, talk to your doctor about which vaccine is right for you and when you should have it.
If you are sexually active, use a condom and other barriers safely to help protect against HPV.
Condoms or other barriers such as an oral dam can reduce HPV infection if put on before skin-to-skin sexual contact. However, areas not covered by these barriers still allow some skin-to-skin contact during sexual activity. Using these barriers will reduce but not eliminate the risk of HPV infection.
Who Should Get Hpv Vaccination
The Centers for Disease Control and Preventions Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices develops recommendations regarding all vaccination in the United States, including HPV vaccination. The current ACIP recommendations for HPV vaccination are :
- Children and adults ages 9 through 26 years. HPV vaccination is routinely recommended at age 11 or 12 years vaccination can be started at age 9 years. HPV vaccination is recommended for all persons through age 26 years who were not adequately vaccinated earlier.
- Adults ages 27 through 45 years. Although the HPV vaccine is Food and Drug Administration approved to be given through age 45 years, HPV vaccination is not recommended for all adults ages 27 through 45 years. Instead, ACIP recommends that clinicians consider discussing with their patients in this age group who were not adequately vaccinated earlier whether HPV vaccination is right for them. HPV vaccination in this age range provides less benefit because more people have already been exposed to the virus.
- Persons who are pregnant. HPV vaccination should be delayed until after pregnancy, but pregnancy testing is not required before vaccination. There is no evidence that vaccination will affect a pregnancy or harm a fetus.
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Safety And Adverse Events
Common and local adverse events
Based on pre-licensure clinical trials, involving more than 15,000 subjects given HPV4 vaccine and 12,000 given HPV2 vaccine, the most common adverse events in persons receiving HPV vaccines were: injection site pain , swelling or redness . These adverse events were observed significantly more often following HPV vaccine than following active vaccine or placebo controls. In over 94% of subjects who received HPV vaccine, the reactions were mild to moderate in intensity, resolved over a few days, and did not prevent completion of the immunization schedule. Systemic adverse events, such as fatigue, myalgia, headache, fever, and nausea, generally occurred with comparable frequency in vaccine and control groups. The safety profile of HPV9 vaccine is comparable to HPV4 vaccine, although mild to moderate intensity injection site reactions are more common following receipt of HPV9 vaccine.
Since vaccine licensure, hundreds of millions of doses of HPV vaccine have been distributed worldwide. Data from post-licensure safety surveillance reporting systems have consistently mirrored the pre-licensure data with the most frequently reported adverse events following immunization being vaccination site reactions and muscle pain.
Less common and serious or severe adverse events
Other reported adverse events and conditions
Guidance on Reporting Adverse Events Following Immunization
Contraindications and precautions
Gardasil 9 Generic Or Biosimilar
Gardasil 9 is a biologic drug thats available only as a brand-name vaccine. Its not currently available in biosimilar form.
Gardasil 9 is considered a biologic because its made of proteins that are similar to the human papillomavirus .
Drugs made from chemicals can have generic forms, which are exact copies of the active drug in the brand-name drug. Biologics arent made from chemicals and cant be copied exactly. So, instead of generics, biologics have biosimilars.
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Does The Immunisation Protect Me From Other Sexually Transmitted Infections
The HPV vaccine is designed to protect you against the 2 types of HPV that cause 75% of cervical cancer cases.
These 2 types of HPV also cause around:
- 90% of anal cancers
- 85% of head and neck cancers
- 78% of vaginal cancers
- 25% of vulval cancers across the world.
The statistics on cancers caused by HPV are different from country to country.
The vaccine also protects against 2 other types of HPV. These cause around 90% of cases of genital warts.
However, having this immunisation won’t protect you against any other sexually transmitted infections such as chlamydia.
To get the best protection it’s important you have all the required doses. If you miss the immunisation session in school, you’ll be recalled to the next one.
The most important thing is to have all the required doses as soon as they’re offered at school. If you’ve left school or are unsure if you’ve missed any vaccinations, contact your GP.
You should be given a consent form and leaflet by your school. You and your parents, or carer, should discuss the information before agreeing to have the immunisation. When you’re given the consent form, you and your parents will be asked to sign it and return it to your school even if you aren’t going to have the vaccine.
We recommend you get agreement from your parent or carer, but it isn’t always necessary.
Fact : The Vaccine Prevents Certain Cancers

HPV is known to cause cancers of the throat, cervix, vulva, vagina, penis, and anus. The HPV vaccine works very well. Studies have shown that the vaccine provides close to 100% protection against infections and pre-cancers caused by certain types of HPV. Giving the vaccine to boys and girls between 9 and 12 years old can prevent more than 90% of HPV cancers when they get older.
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The Hpv Vaccine Protects Against Cancer The Vaccine Is Safe And Effective
What are HPV vaccines?
- The HPV vaccines protect against infection from certain types of human papillomavirus that cause cancers of the anus, cervix, mouth and throat, penis, vagina, and vulva as well as genital warts
- There are two HPV vaccines available in Canada: Cervarix® and Gardasil®9 . The HPV9 vaccine is approved for use in both males and females. The HPV2 vaccine is only approved for use in females.
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Both vaccines protect against 2 types of HPV that cause about 70% of cases of cervical cancer and 80% of cases of anal cancer. The HPV9 vaccine protects against 5 additional types of HPV that cause 15% to 20% of cervical cancers and 11% of anal cancers in women and 4% in men.
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The HPV9 vaccine also protects against 2 types of HPV that cause about 90% of cases of genital warts.
What Are The Advantages Of Getting The Hpv Vaccine
The biggest advantage is reducing your risk for cancers caused by HPV infection. HPV is so common that around 80% of people in the United States will encounter it at some point in their lives. There is no way to know which infection can lead to cancer. Vaccinating against HPV is the best protection available at this time.
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Subunit Recombinant Polysaccharide And Conjugate Vaccines
Subunit, recombinant, polysaccharide, and conjugate vaccines use specific pieces of the germlike its protein, sugar, or capsid .
Because these vaccines use only specific pieces of the germ, they give a very strong immune response thats targeted to key parts of the germ. They can also be used on almost everyone who needs them, including people with weakened immune systems and long-term health problems.
One limitation of these vaccines is that you may need booster shots to get ongoing protection against diseases.
These vaccines are used to protect against:
Frequently Asked Questionsexpand All
If you are older than 26, have not been vaccinated, and are at risk of a new HPV infection, you and your health care practitioner can talk about whether you need the HPV vaccine. The vaccine is approved for people through age 45.
If your child has not had all of the shots, he or she does not have to start over. Your child can get the next shot that is due even if the time between them is longer than recommended.
This is also true for you if you have not completed the number of recommended shots. Talk with your health care practitioner if you have questions about getting any shots you missed.
The most common side effect of the HPV vaccine is soreness and redness where the shot is given. There have been no reports of severe side effects or bad reactions to the vaccine.
The HPV vaccine is highly effective when given before a person has sex. The vaccine can reduce the risk of HPV-related genital warts and cancer by up to 99 percent when all recommended shots have been given. It is one of the most effective vaccines you can get.
Yes. If you have had sex, you may already be infected with one or more types of HPV. But the vaccine may still protect you against HPV types you do not have yet.
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Having The Hpv Vaccine
The vaccine is given in your arm and you need 2 doses to be fully protected.
The first injection is given in year 8 and the second one is usually 6 to 12 months later. You will be informedwhen you are due the second dose.
To give you the best protection, the vaccine should be given before you become sexually active. If you are sexually active you should still have the vaccine.
A Closer Look At The Safety Data
Findings from many vaccine safety monitoring systems and more than 160 studies have shown that HPV vaccines have a favorable safety profilethe body of scientific evidence overwhelmingly supports their safety.
- In November 2019, initial post-licensure safety monitoring of Gardasil 9 was published in Pediatrics. In two separate articles, analyses from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System and the Vaccine Safety Datalink were presented. Both included multiple years of data, and did not identify any unexpected safety problems with Gardasil 9. These findings support the favorable safety profile that was established in pre-licensure clinical trials.
- Analysis from VAERS: Researchers reviewed 7,244 reports submitted to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System following HPV vaccination from December 2014 through December 2017. Of those reports, around 97% were classified as non-serious around 3% were considered serious. The analysis did not detect any new or unexpected safety concerns.Safety of the 9-Valent Human Papillomavirus Vaccine. external icon
- Analysis from VSD: The Vaccine Safety Datalink conducted near-real time surveillance from October 2015 through October 2017, looking at 11 pre-specified adverse events. During this two-year time period, nearly 840,000 doses were administered to people aged 9-26 years at six VSD sites. No new safety concerns were identified.Near Real-Time Surveillance to Assess the Safety of the 9-Valen Human Papillomavirus Vaccine. external icon
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