Targeted Battle Against HPV

Since the launch of the global strategy against cervical cancer in 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) has accelerated the initiative by virtue of commitments and strategies offered by governments and organisations worldwide.

- Ayesha Siddiqui

Australia is on track to become one of the first nations to achieve this, and countries like Bangladesh and Indonesia have introduced HPV vaccines. Let's examine Asia's efforts in eliminating cervical cancer and whether the continent is on track to meet WHO's targets by 2030.

Cervical cancer is the second most prevalent cancer affecting women globally. Projections indicate a rise in the annual incidence of new cases from 570,000 to 700,000 between 2018 and 2030, with corresponding deaths expected to increase from 311,000 to 400,000. The majority of these fatalities are concentrated in low-and lower-middle-income countries (LMICs), highlighting the challenge posed by insufficient access to cervical cancer prevention, screening, and treatment.

To urgently address the disparity, the WHO launched the global strategy in 2020 to eliminate cervical cancer. Targets for 2030 include 90 per cent HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccination for girls by the age of 15, 70 per cent high-performance screening for women at 35 and 45, and treating 90 per cent of pre-cancer and invasive cases. Meeting these 90–70–90 targets is essential for each country to eliminate cervical cancer globally by the next century.

“The WHO’s call to eliminate cervical cancer from 2018 was bolstered by the 2020 Global Strategy to eliminate cervical cancer, which included targets for prevention, screening, and treatment by 2030. This initiative inspired attention for what is currently a lagging effort around the world,” said Anuradha Gupta, President, Global Immunisation at Sabin Vaccine Institute, USA. Sabin is dedicated to making vaccines more accessible, enabling innovation and expanding immunisation across the globe.