HPV Vaccine May Eradicate Cervical Cancer

An experimental vaccine targeted at two types of human papillomavirus (HPV-16 and HPV-18) that cause an estimated 70% of cervical cancer has shown extremely promising results in an international trial.

In the blinded, randomized trial, 1,113 women from the United States, Canada, and Brazil received three doses of the vaccine or a placebo over six months. At 27 months of follow up, the vaccine was 100% effective against persistent HPV 16/18 infections. Even in women who received only one or two of the three shots or did not complete all follow-up appointments, the vaccine proved to be 95% effective against persistent HPV infection, 93% against cytologic abnormalities associated with HPV 16/18, and complete protection from cervical tissue changes due to HPV 16/18. The results were published in the November 13, 2004, issue of The Lancet.

The trial was directed by Dr. Diane Harper of Norris Cotton Cancer Center at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (Lebanon, NH, USA; www.dartmouth.edu). She called the results of the study "extremely exciting and encouraging. We believe this shows enormous potential to eradicate the great majority of cervical cancers worldwide.”

Dr. Harper also noted that the vaccine showed a high degree of safety, with no adverse effects to the participants and complete protection against persistent infection. Recruitment for a larger, phase III trial is now under way. About 500,000 cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed annually worldwide.




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