Promising results for cervical cancer vaccine

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

A clinical trial shows that a vaccine against human papillomavirus can reduce the incidence of infection in women.
Some strains of human papillomavirus (HPV) have been linked to cervical cancer and painful genital warts. Screening for cancer has reduced deaths from the disease in Europe, but it is still a big problem in developing countries. About 70 per cent of sexually active women will become infected with HPV in their lifetime.

A team at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Brazil, gave an experimental vaccine against a strain of HPV known to cause cancer to a group of young women and compared it to placebo. Those taking the vaccine had a 90 per cent reduced incidence of infection. The vaccine was also 100 per cent effective against pre-cancerous lesions. The researchers think the vaccine might be best employed in very young women, who have not yet become infected with HPV.

Source
The Lancet Oncology online 6th April 2005

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