Vaccination boost

Cancer Council Victoria has welcomed the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee’s (PBAC) recommendation to include Gardasil 9 in the National Immunisation Program.

The new, more effective HPV vaccination will boost protection against cervical cancer in fully vaccinated females to 90 per cent in just two vaccination doses.

This compares to the current vaccination, which offers women 77 per cent protection.

Cancer Council Victoria screening, early detection and immunisation manager Kate Broun said the new vaccination would provide women with greater protection against cervical cancer.

‘‘We know there are 13 types of HPV associated with developing cervical cancer,’’ she said.

‘‘The new vaccine includes nine of these types, lifting protection from 77 to 90 per cent.’’

Gardasil 9 will provide fully vaccinated women with protection against all the HPV strains in the current quadrivalent vaccine, as well as the five next most common HPV types found in cervical cancer (types 31, 33, 45, 52 and 58).

It offers better protection from two, instead of three, doses of the vaccination.