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| Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection can be drastically reduced by vaccination, a study showed. Korea Times file |
By Bahk Eun-ji
Cervical cancer is one of the most common causes of cancer-related deaths in women. Infections via the human papillomavirus (HPV), especially types 16 and 18, cause 70 percent of cancerous and pre-cancerous cervical lesions.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), HPV, a group of viruses that are extremely common worldwide, has more than 100 types. Among them, at least 14 are cancer-causing, and most people are infected with the virus shortly after the onset of sexual activity. The virus is sexually transmitted, but skin-to-skin genital contact is also a mode of transmission.
Apart from the cancer-causing strains, many types of HPV do not cause cancer or other problems, and more than 90 percent are cleared up within two years, according to the WHO.
The infection is so common that most sexually active people get the virus at some point in their lives. Women are at risk of genital HPV infection progressing to cervical cancer, and the health consequences for men are significantly lower but still existent.
Although most genital HPV infections are not harmful and naturally go away on their own, some kinds of HPV can lead to genital warts or cancer ― types 6 and 11 cause most cases of genital warts, which are considered low-risk HPV, as they don't lead to cancer or other serious problems.
It usually takes 15 to 20 years for HPV to develop into cancer under a normal immune system, and only five to 10 years if the immune system is weakened, according to the WHO.
There is no cure for HPV, but there are certain things to keep the virus infection from having a negative impact on health. It is said HPV vaccination for adolescent women substantially reduces the number of HPV infections, precancerous cervical lesions and anogenital warts.
According to a new research jointly conducted by 45 institutes worldwide including Laval University in Quebec, vaccination drastically reduced HPV infections by 83 percent among girls aged 13 to 19 compared to the time before the vaccine was released. The reduction ratio was lower among women aged 20 to 24, at 66 percent.
A similar reduction of ratios was found for anogenital warts and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia.
The study was based on data from an HPV vaccination program on 60 million people in 14 countries.
Vaccination also appeared to benefit men. The cases of anogenital warts in males aged 15 to 19 decreased by 48 percent, and 32 percent in the group of people aged from 20 to 24.
The figures are impressive, but not every country saw the same results, according to the study. Cervical cancer is no longer a major killer in some wealthy countries, while it is still a leading cause of female mortality in less developed nations, according to data released by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) in 2018.
Since HPV vaccines were licensed in 2007, Korea has been witnessing an increasing number of women getting the vaccination.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) has offered free HPV vaccination shots to 12-year-old girls for free since 2016, along with health consultations.
Girls born in 2006 and 2007 are subject to the free vaccination program this year, and the vaccine is administered twice with a six-month interval.
Two types of vaccines are available ― Cervarix made by Britain's GSK, and Gardasil from Merck.
