Although there have been significant advancements in the screening and treatment of cancer, thousands of women every year contract cervical cancer.
Scientists believe that an estimated 80 percent of women will acquire a genital HPV infection by the age of 50, and nearly half of those women will acquire a type of HPV infection which is potentially cancer-causing.
While the risk of HPV infection reaches its peak in younger age women, all are at risk for developing a cancer-causing HPV infection throughout their lifetime.
News is therefore very welcome that a new cervical cancer vaccine has produced a high immune response in women ages 26-55 against persistent infection with HPV types 16 and 18, the two most common cancer-causing HPV types.
Dr. Juan C. Felix, Medical Advisor, NCCC and Chief of Surgical Pathology, University of Southern California, says the findings suggest the vaccine can provide protection for women of all ages and is the first evidence that a cervical cancer vaccine may work in women ages 26 and older.
Recently published data of the Phase 3 trial showed that 666 women received Cervarix injections and all developed antibodies to the two HPV types the vaccine targets.
The antibodies were still present seven months after the first of three doses and remained 12 months after the first shot and the vaccine was "generally safe and well-tolerated" says Glaxo.