Call for HPV-free future for Filipinos gets support
Human papillomavirus (HPV), which causes infections among the majority of people throughout their sexually active years, was at the forefront of health discussions recently as advocates and stakeholders in the country joined the rest of the world in commemorating International HPV Awareness Day on March 4.
As a fervent supporter of HPV Awareness Day, global healthcare leader MSD in the Philippines reiterated its commitment toward a future free from HPV.
Every hour around the world, 70 males and females are diagnosed with malignancies related to HPV. The World Health Organization (WHO) describes HPV as an “extremely common” virus affecting the reproductive tract. Majority of sexually active women will acquire it, sometimes repeatedly, although 90% of the cases will resolve on their own except for a percentage with certain types of HPV that can persist and progress to cervical cancer. There is now also a growing body of evidence that other cancers like anal, penile, vulvar, and vaginal cancers have strong links to HPV.
Burden of HPV in developing countries
In developed countries, the incidence of invasive cervical cancer has declined significantly partly because of its programs that enable girls to be vaccinated against HPV, and women to be screened regularly so pre-cancerous lesions are identified at their early, treatable stages. Quite a different story presents itself in resource-constrained settings due to implementation hurdles in immunization and screening and control programs.
According to projections reported this year by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, “unless preventive measures are implemented promptly, the burden of cervical cancer is expected to increase to almost 460,000 deaths per year by 2040, an increase of nearly 50% over the estimated number of deaths in 2018. The greatest relative increase will occur in LMICs” or low and middleincome countries.
In the Philippines, cervical cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer-related deaths among Filipinas. Like in other developing countries, limited access to efficient preventative measures could mean that cervical cancer is often undiagnosed until it has progressed and symptoms appear. Access to treatment options for latestage diseases such as cancer surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy may be very limited, resulting in a higher death rate from cervical cancer, the WHO reports.
Inventing for life
The scourge of cancer is all the more agonizing for families and communities here in the Philippines because cervical cancer deaths occur among teenage girls and breadwinners, or women aged 15 to 44 years. But there is another side to the story: MSD is working relentlessly to make sure that every scientific breakthrough has the potential to create a lasting impact on lives around the world and for generations to come.
For more than a century now, MSD has been developing medicines and vaccines for many of the world’s most challenging diseases. Its anthem, “Inventing for Life” is a declaration of the company’s commitment to find cures through world-class science. One of its key contributions is the development of the firstever vaccine to help protect against HPV strains that lead to cervical, vaginal, vulvar, and anal cancers in women and men, as well as against diseases linked to HPV such as genital warts. HPV vaccine was initially approved more than 10 years ago and is now licensed in more than 130 countries around the world, including the Philippines.
MSD also addresses society’s healthcare needs by establishing inventive partnerships, and sharing business and technical expertise to enable expanded and sustained delivery of health services.
Across the globe, MSD supports the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), a global vaccine alliance bringing together public and private sectors with the shared goal of creating equal access to new and underused vaccines for children living in the world’s poorest countries.