Second Cervical Cancer Vaccine Protects Against Additional HPV Types
A large international trial funded by GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals shows that the Cervarix vaccine is highly effective against infections with human papillomavirus (HPV) types 16 and 18. Final results of the Papilloma Trial Against Cancer In Young Adults (PATRICIA) were published July 8 in The Lancet.
Dr. Jorma Paavonen, of the University of Helsinki in Finland, and his colleagues in the PATRICIA study group followed 18,644 women aged 15 to 25 for a median of 34.9 months after vaccination (17,106 women received the full sequence of three injections). About half of the women were in a blinded control group that received a hepatitis A vaccine conferring no protection against HPV infection.
The Cervarix vaccine reduced the risk of precancerous lesions known as grade II cervical intraepithelial neoplasias (CIN2+) by nearly 93 percent in participants who completed the full sequence. The vaccine also provided a lesser but significant degree of cross-protection against HPV types 31, 33 and 45. This added protection could raise the potential effectiveness of HPV vaccination from about 70 percent to between 81 and 86 percent.
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