Researchers tease out benefit of HPV vaccine based on dose and age group

Findings from a new population-based study found that no matter how many doses of bivalent HPV vaccine were administered, no woman who received the HPV bivalent vaccine at age 12 or 13 years developed invasive cancer later.

The dataset used by researchers covered women who were born between January 1, 1988, and June 5, 1996, and were captured in the national cervical cancer screening system.

Researchers found that vaccine recipients aged 14 to 21 years old had a much lower incidence of invasive cancer than their unvaccinated counterparts. However, they needed three doses to achieve significant protection. Additionally, researchers discovered that three doses conveyed a greater benefit for females from deprived areas compared with less deprived communities.

Findings from the study, which were published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, appear to validate the efficacy of bivalent HPV vaccine in preventing invasive cervical cancer.

Incidence of invasive cervical cancer and vaccine effectiveness were stratified based on whether or not patients were immunized; at what age they were vaccinated, if applicable; and whether or not they lived in underprivileged communities.