Source: news.com.au
Author: Kate Sikora

The new cervical cancer vaccine is expected to almost eradicate human papillomavirus (HPV) infections in Australian women by 2050 if the high rate of immunization amongst girls continues.

Research to be released today by the Cancer Council NSW reveals the number of new HPV cases in women will fall by more than 50 per cent in the next two years.

In 40 years, the number of cases will fall by 97 per cent.

A national program launched last April has seen 3.7 million girls vaccinated with Gardasil, which has the potential to prevent up to 70 per cent of cervical cancers.

Before the vaccination program, there were 108,000 new infections of HPV16 – responsible for 50 per cent of cervical cancers – every year, but that number is expected to fall to 47,000 by 2010.

Dr Karen Canfell, lead author of the study, warned the reduction in HPV would only occur if girls continued to be vaccinated.

“We expect to see a very fast reduction in the number of new HPV infections, largely due to the high school vaccination program, which we estimate has achieved high coverage of just over 80 per cent of 12-13-year-old girls,” she said.

“This reduction will only occur if we maintain this high vaccination coverage among younger age groups.”

Gardasil has attracted controversy over its rate of adverse reactions.

Nationally, there have been 1013 reports of adverse side effects from Gardasil to the Therapeutic Goods Administration.

Girls have reported allergic reactions, dizziness, fainting and nausea.

Dr Canfell said adverse reactions occurred with any new drug.

“The disease that it protects against is far more harmful than its side effects,” she said.

“It’s really important that parents of girls in school understand they need to have the girls vaccinated.”

Johanna Roberts, 12, is too young to understand the risk of HPV, but she is aware that three jabs from the school nurse could save her life.

“My mum signed the permission slip and I lined up with the other girls,” she said.

Her mother Allison said she would have paid to have her daughters vaccinated if the school program was not in place.

“I have never had a problem with the childhood vaccination program so I didn’t really have a problem with this,” she said.

“If it protects them from having an abnormal pap test then the positives absolutely outweigh the negative side-effects.”