PAHO: Eight in 10 adolescent girls in the Americas have access to HPV vaccine, following its introduction in Brazil
03/20/2014

PAHO said that following its introduction in Brazil last week, HPV vaccine is now available to more than 80% of adolescent girls in the Americas…

…PAHO/WHO estimates that 68,818 women in the Americas developed cervical cancer and 28,565 died from the disease in 2012. In Brazil, the National Cancer Institute estimates 15,000 new cases and 4,800 deaths each year.

This year, Brazil plans to vaccinate 5.2 million adolescent girls ages 11 to 13, or more than 20% of all girls in this age group in the Americas. In 2015, Brazil plans to expand the target group to girls 9 to 11, and starting in 2016 to 9-year-old girls. The vaccinations are being given at public and private schools and in the 36,000 vaccination centers of the national health system…

…PAHO supports Brazil’s decision to provide the HPV vaccine free of charge to adolescent girls as part of an integrated approach to prevention and control of cervical cancer. “The universal introduction of the HPV vaccine shows the commitment of Brazilian officials and health workers,” said Cuauhtémoc Ruiz, head of PAHO/WHO’s Expanded Immunization Program…