One Shot for All: Welcoming a One-Dose Gender-Neutral HPV Vaccination

The one-dose, gender-neutral human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination approach is more effective in eliminating cervical cancer in Canada.

Canadian vaccination programs could eliminate cervical cancer by switching to a 1-dose gender-neutral human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination approach, suggests new modelling in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) ().

“Our results have important policy implications in Canada, and in other similar high-income countries evaluating whether to switch to 1-dose HPV vaccination,” writes Dr. Marc Brisson, a full professor at Laval University, Québec, and director of the Mathematical Modeling and Health Economics of Infectious Diseases Lab at the Centre de recherche du CHU de Québec–Université Laval.

Single-Dose HPV Vaccine Protects Against Cervical Cancer: WHO
Cervical cancer kills a woman every 2 minutes and single-dose of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine offers solid protection against cervical cancer.

‘Did You Know?
A one-dose, gender-neutral human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination could prevent a comparable number of cervical cancers as a two-dose regimen. #HPV #cervicalcancers #medindia ’

The New HPV Vaccination Approach

Countries around the world are looking at whether to move from a 2-dose to 1-dose HPV vaccination approach after a 2022 recommendation by the World Health Organization Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization based on clinical trial evidence. Human papillomavirus can cause cervical cancer and other diseases.

Researchers in Ontario and Quebec modelled various scenarios based on 1- and 2-dose approaches to inform recommendations from the Canadian National Advisory Committee on Immunization and the Comité sur l’immunisation du Québec.

Is Single-dose HPV Vaccine Effective in Preventing Cervical Cancer?

The group found that 1-dose gender-neutral vaccination could prevent a similar number of cervical cancers as 2 doses, if vaccine protection remains high during ages of peak sexual activity. “[A]ll 1-dose vaccination scenarios, even the most pessimistic, were projected to be a substantially more efficient use of vaccine doses than 2-dose vaccination; these scenarios were also all projected to lead to elimination of cervical cancer in Canada between 2032 and 2040,” write the authors.

HPV Vaccine Reduces Risk Of Cervical Cancer In Young Women
Incidence rates of cervical pre-cancerous changes reduced significantly in young women who have been offered HPV vaccine.

This approach is a more efficient use of vaccine doses and is projected to help eliminate cervical cancer in Canada.

“The COVID-19 pandemic impacted HPV vaccination in Canada, particularly among vulnerable population subgroups. The potential economic savings by switching to 1-dose vaccination, and its programmatic flexibility, could allow investments to increase vaccination uptake in regions where coverage is suboptimal and in high HPV burden subgroups to mitigate the pandemic’s impact on programs and to reduce inequalities,” said Dr. Chantal Sauvageau, specialist in community health and consultant in infectious diseases at the National Institute of Public Health in the province of Quebec.

Men too Needs HPV Vaccination
HPV vaccination gives protection to girls and women against cervical, vaginal and vulvar cancer, it also helps protect boys and men against genital warts, penis and anal cancer caused by the HPV virus.

Regular monitoring of 1-dose protection is advised to detect signs of waning protection.

References:

Switching from a 2-dose to a 1-dose program of gender-neutral routine vaccination against human papillomavirus in Canada: a mathematical modelling analysis - (https://www.cmaj.ca/content/196/33/E1136)

Source-Eurekalert

Vaccines Against Cervical Cancer Benefit Women
The cervical cancer vaccines should be introduced to parents as a cancer-preventing measure and not as vaccines against a sexually transmitted infection.