Human Papillomavirus Immunization and the Elimination of Cervical Carcinoma
Authors: Timothy Palmer, Kate Cuschieri
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2020)

Editorials1 December 2020Human Papillomavirus Immunization and the Elimination of Cervical CarcinomaTimothy Palmer, MBBS and Kate Cuschieri, BSc, PhDTimothy Palmer, MBBSUniversity of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland (T.P.)Search for more papers by this author and Kate Cuschieri, BSc, PhDRoyal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland (K.C.)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M20-6011 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail In their current report, Baussano and colleagues describe how a human papillomavirus (HPV) immunization program in Bhutan is pointing the way toward realizing the World Health Organization (WHO) goal of eliminating cervical cancer (1). Bhutan achieved a high uptake of HPV vaccination (approximately 90%) in girls and women aged 12 to 18 years through a school-based program, with “catch-up” vaccination in older age groups. Through use of the quadrivalent vaccine, Bhutan saw an 88% reduction in vaccine-related high-risk HPV over 7 years, despite observed changes in sexual behavior associated with risk for HPV-related disease.These results are extremely encouraging considering ...References1. Baussano I, Tshomo U, Tenet V, et al. Prevalence of human papillomavirus and estimation of human papillomavirus vaccine effectiveness in Thimphu, Bhutan, in 2011–2012 and 2018. A cross-sectional study. Ann Intern Med. 2020;173:888-94. doi:10.7326/M20-2849 LinkGoogle Scholar2. Arbyn M, Weiderpass E, Bruni L, et al. Estimates of incidence and mortality of cervical cancer in 2018: a worldwide analysis. Lancet Glob Health. 2020;8:e191-e203. [PMID: 31812369] doi:10.1016/S2214-109X(19)30482-6 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. World Health Organization. WHO Director-General calls for all countries to take action to help end the suffering caused by cervical cancer. Accessed at www.who.int/reproductivehealth/call-to-action-elimination-cervical-cancer/en on 20 August 2020. Google Scholar4. Cubie HA, Morton D, Kawonga E, et al. HPV prevalence in women attending cervical screening in rural Malawi using the cartridge-based Xpert® HPV assay. J Clin Virol. 2017;87:1-4. [PMID: 27984765] doi:10.1016/j.jcv.2016.11.014 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. de Sanjose S, Holme F. What is needed now for successful scale-up of screening? Papillomavirus Res. 2019;7:173-175. [PMID: 31002883] doi:10.1016/j.pvr.2019.04.011 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Hanley SJ, Yoshioka E, Ito Y, et al. HPV vaccination crisis in Japan [Letter]. Lancet. 2015;385:2571. [PMID: 26122153] doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(15)61152-7 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar7. Union for International Cancer Control. GAVI Global Vaccine Summit – HPV vaccinations essential to eliminating cervical cancer. Accessed at www.uicc.org/news/gavi-global-vaccine-summit––hpv-vaccinations-essential-eliminating-cervical-cancer on 20 August 2020. Google Scholar8. Bergman H, Buckley BS, Villanueva G, et al. Comparison of different human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine types and dose schedules for prevention of HPV-related disease in females and males. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2019;2019. [PMID: 31755549] doi:10.1002/14651858.CD013479 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar9. Joura EA, Giuliano AR, Iversen OE, et al; Broad Spectrum HPV Vaccine Study. A 9-valent HPV vaccine against infection and intraepithelial neoplasia in women. N Engl J Med. 2015;372:711-23. [PMID: 25693011] doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1405044 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar10. Markowitz LE, Drolet M, Perez N, et al. Human papillomavirus vaccine effectiveness by number of doses: systematic review of data from national immunization programs. Vaccine. 2018;36:4806-4815. [PMID: 29802000] doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2018.01.057 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland (T.P.)Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland (K.C.)Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M20-6011.Corresponding Author: Timothy Palmer, MBBS, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9AG, United Kingdom; e-mail, tim.[email protected]scot.Current Author Addresses: Dr. Palmer: Department of Pathology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9AG, United Kingdom.Dr. Cuschieri: Scottish HPV Reference Laboratory, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH16 4SA, United Kingdom.This article was published at Annals.org on 22 September 2020. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoPrevalence of Human Papillomavirus and Estimation of Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Effectiveness in Thimphu, Bhutan, in 2011–2012 and 2018 Iacopo Baussano , Ugyen Tshomo , Vanessa Tenet , Daniëlle A.M. Heideman , Tshering Wangden , Silvia Franceschi , and Gary M. Clifford Metrics 1 December 2020Volume 173, Issue 11Page: 935-936KeywordsCancer vaccinesCervical cancerDisclosureGlobal healthHuman papillomavirusPopulation statisticsResearch designResearch laboratoriesSafetyVaccines ePublished: 22 September 2020 Issue Published: 1 December 2020 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2020 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...