one dose of HPV vaccine is sufficient for women under 21, WHO says

“A woman dies approximately every two minutes” cancer of the cervix around the world, recalled Monday April 11, the chairman of the WHO expert committee on vaccine policy, Dr. Alejandro Cravioto. This disease, almost always caused by an infection, sexually transmitted, with the papillomavirus. Since the 2000s, vaccines have been used against this virus. And if so far two doses were recommended for women of all ages, the WHO expert committee says that now a single dose of the vaccine against the papillomavirus is sufficient for those under 21 years of age.

Note that WHO experts continue to recommend two doses six months apart for women over 21 years of age. Same for the “immunocompromised people, mainly people with HIV” to whom it can even be recommended the administration “at least two, or even three doses, so that they are completely immunized”highlighted the chairman of the committee, Dr. Alejandro Cravioto.

These new recommendations should allow a greater number of girls and women to be vaccinated, “while maintaining the necessary level of protection”specified the president of the committee, in a press conference, even if the national programs of vaccination can however continue to use two doses if they consider it necessary.

“This single-dose recommendation has the potential to move us faster towards our goal of having 90% of girls aged 15 immunized by 2030”, said Dr. Princess Nothemba Simelela, Deputy Director General of the WHO. In 2020, global coverage with a 2-dose vaccination schedule was only 13%.