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Human papillomavirus vaccine Gardasil significantly reduces the rate of abnormal Pap test results, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the US Society of Gynecological Oncologists in Tampa, Florida.
Dr Warner Huh of the University of Alabama told delegates that more than 18,000 women had participated in three phase II/III clinical trials, and that those receiving the vaccine proved 43% less likely to present high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL).
The studies also found a 16-35% reduction in less serious abnormalities.
Dr Huh emphasized that these results do not prove that the vaccine prevents cervical cancers, but suggest that it seems to halt the development of cell changes that results in cervical disease.
This research was originally presented by Gardasil maker Sanofi-Pasteur at the 20th European Congress of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in Lisbon, Portugal earlier this month.
Professor Charles Lacey, lead investigator from the Hull York Medical School, said: “The new data confirm the benefit that quadrivalent vaccination can provide in addition to cervical cancer prevention both for women’s health and for health authorities.
“Gardasil offers a wide spectrum of protection against genital diseases caused by HPV and both an early and sustained protection which translates into rapid individual and long-lasting socio-economic benefit.”
