Gandhinagar/Ahmedabad, March 4 (NationPress) The state of Gujarat has aimed to vaccinate 550,000 adolescent girls against cervical cancer through a comprehensive statewide Human Papillomavirus (HPV) immunization initiative, which commenced in Ahmedabad following the recent national rollout announced last week.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially launched the nationwide campaign on February 28 in Rajasthan.

The Gujarat segment of this campaign was inaugurated at Sola Civil Hospital by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, alongside Health Minister Praful Pansheriya.

Health officials indicated that the primary goal is to protect 14-year-old girls from cervical cancer, which ranks as the second most prevalent cancer among women in India, accounting for approximately 17.7% of cases.

According to national statistics, a woman in India is diagnosed with cervical cancer every four minutes and twelve seconds, and a death occurs every seven minutes.

About 70 to 75% of patients receive diagnoses at the second or third stage, contributing to the disease being a leading cause of mortality among women aged 30 to 69 years.

In 2022, India reported an estimated 127,526 new cases and 79,906 deaths attributed to cervical cancer, while Gujarat documented 4,928 new cases and 1,781 deaths during the same timeframe.

Experts from the Gujarat Cancer Research Institute (GCRI) emphasize that concerns and misinformation regarding the HPV vaccine are baseless.

They confirmed that the vaccine is both safe and effective in preventing infections from high-risk HPV types 16 and 18, which are responsible for the majority of cervical cancer cases.

Medical professionals explained that a persistent HPV infection can lead to Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia (CIN) over a span of 10 to 20 years, potentially evolving into invasive cancer, thus making early vaccination a vital preventive step.

Referring to global evidence, they cited findings from the World Health Organization's Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety, which reported no causal link between HPV vaccination and infertility or severe side effects.

The vaccine has received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In India, the vaccine's inclusion in public health initiatives has been endorsed by the Indian Council of Medical Research and the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization.

Over 100 countries, including Australia, the United Kingdom, and Canada, have integrated the HPV vaccine into their national immunization programs.

Following the vaccine's introduction in Australia in 2007, there has been a reported 90% reduction in HPV infections and high-grade cervical lesions.

Studies conducted in the United Kingdom indicate a 87% reduction in cervical cancer incidence among girls vaccinated at ages 12 to 13.

State officials noted that while the vaccine costs approximately Rs 3,000 per dose in the private sector, it is being provided free of charge under this program, with an estimated budget of Rs 150 crore allocated from the exchequer.

A total of 2,297 cold chain points have been established to maintain the necessary storage temperatures between +2°C and +8°C.

Medical personnel and emergency medications are stationed at vaccination centers to handle minor adverse reactions, and real-time monitoring of coverage and outcomes is being implemented through the TeCHO+ and SAFE-VAC digital platforms.

This initiative is in line with the World Health Organization’s 90-70-90 target to eliminate cervical cancer by 2030, which advocates for 90% vaccination coverage among adolescent girls, screening for 70% of women at ages 35 and 45, and treatment for 90% of identified cases.