Home / Mar 07- Mar 13, 2026 / MIND & BODY, HEART & SOUL / NEW HPV VACCINE TARGETS YOUNG GIRLS!By Dr RG Wiseman Pinto
NEW HPV VACCINE TARGETS YOUNG GIRLS!By Dr RG Wiseman Pinto
No Comments on NEW HPV VACCINE TARGETS YOUNG GIRLS!By Dr RG Wiseman Pinto

NEW HPV VACCINE TARGETS YOUNG GIRLS!By Dr RG Wiseman Pinto

Mar 07- Mar 13, 2026, MIND & BODY, HEART & SOUL March 6, 2026 , by

THE HPV (Human Papilloma Virus) is a DNA Virus with double strands, it has a tropism for the squamous epithelial cells, more so of the basal layer. There are around 200 serotypes and molecular types of HPV.
 The High Risk types Types 16, 18 can cause cancer of the cervix 99%, cancers of vagina, penis, scrotum, anus, oropharynx and adenocarcinoma of the cervix and also urinary bladder cancers.

The low risk types cause warts
THE HPV produces oncoproteins E 5 , E6 and E 7. The infection can be diagnosed by PCR. DNA ISH (In situ hybridization), RNA ISH
P 16 is the surrogate marker detected by IHC immunohistochemistry.
Dual p16 / E 4 testing is also done
Also Serum Antibodies against HPV 16 and against E 1 / E 4
THE mode of transmission is by vaginal sex, oral sex and anal sex, as well as by intimate touching like fingering, by sharing sex toys and from mother to the child .
By oral sex the HPV virus is transmitted from the genital region to the mouth, oropharynx and tonsil — causing head-neck cancer. Smoking and impaired immunity will help the virus to progress and cancer is the result.
DR HARALD ZUR HAUSEN, a German virologist, first demonstrated the relationship between HPV serotypes 16 and 18 and cancer of the cervix. For this discovery he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2008

The HPV Vaccines are Gardasil and Cervarix
 IN India, the government has launched an immunisation drive for girls around about the age of 14 years or so, early teens.
Gardasil 4 which is a quadrivalent HPV vaccine developed against the HPV Serotypes 16, 18, 6 and 11
The HPV vaccine is given to girls and boys before their sexual activity begins. In Western countries and developed countries the vaccine is given at ages of 11 to 12 years. The vaccine gives 97 % to 99 % protection against HPV and immunity lasts for around 10 years

The HPV vaccine Gardasil was approved by US FDA in 2006.
 It is currently recommended by WHO and is being used in 150 countries. It was first used in 2006. Australia was the first country to give the vaccine for girls and boys.
Due to alleged reported side-effects Japan withdrew the vaccine in 2013. But in 2021 Japan restarted the HPV vaccination program.

What are the contra indications?
Pregnancy. Allergy. Present illness.

What are the side effects of the HPV Vaccine?
 Pain, swelling, redness at the injection site, fever, dizziness, fainting, headache, fatigue, joint pain. Very rarely allergy and anaphylactic shock, GB (Guillaine Barre) syndrome and other autoimmune diseases.
The vaccine is administered by Intramuscular injection: 2 to 3 doses.
Gardasil is a recombinant, non-infective 4 valent vaccine. It uses the capsid protein of the HPV types 16 ,18 ,6, 11. It induces a strong immune response and immunity lasts for 10 to 12 years.
In spite of vaccination it must be stressed that women must be screened after marriage with Pap smears testing and HPV testing every three to five years.

AstraZeneca and Merck
The company is known as MSD outside USA and Canada and it has a major stake in the HPV vaccine. In 2008 when the Nobel Prize was announced there was a major controversy regarding financial conflict of interest and exclusion of other key researchers.
AstraZeneca, which had a stake in the HPV vaccine, was also the sponsor of Nobel Web.and Nobel Media and has ties with the Nobel Foundation. Also, one member of the Board of AstraZeneca, was also on the Nobel Committee which selects the prize winners.
The risk factors for cancer of the cervix are HPV, smoking , low immunity, early onset of sexual activity below 18 years, multiple sexual partners, parity — that is many children, other sexually transmitted diseases, obesity, imbalanced diet, oral contraceptives, and DES (Di ethyl stilbesterol) given to the mother during pregnancy.
Family history must also be considered.
A study was conducted by Dr Anjali Naik and Dr RG Wiseman Pinto in Goa Medical College, a 10-year-old study from 2010 to 2019 involving 11.690 cancers of all sites .
In this study the incidence of breast cancer was 22.75 % and cancer of cervix was 8.67 %. So breast cancer is the commonest and cancer of cervix is the second commonest in women in Goa.
The author at an international conference in Yokohama, Japan, in May and June 2016 (ICC International Congress of Cytology) had recommended two important points to the WHO and authorities in India .

  1. Screen women in India for the HPV serotypes so as to know the prevalence and the serotype in India
  2. To give the vaccine at a slightly later age in India as the girls in India are sexually active later in comparison to the countries of the West.
    Modern day trends may be changing this understanding. So the take home message is in spite of being vaccinated every woman must get a periodic Pap smear test and HPV test done.
    Pap smears are done in Goa in all government and private set ups. HPV testing is done by the Obstretics & Gynecology department and Microbiology department of the Goa Medical College & Hospital as well as the District and Sub-District hospitals in Goa.
    The HPV vaccine was recently launched all over India in 2026, although it was first introduced in the developed countries in 2006. Due to the high cost the vaccine was given in metro cities to the well to do patients. But now the government of India is giving the vaccine free of cost
    Dr Zahra Maleki, Associate Professor of Pathology at John Hopkins, Baltimore has done extensive work on HPV-related head and neck related cancers. She has presented a case of a black American girl of 18 years who had HPV-related head and neck cancer and was not given HPV vaccine.
    The author discussed with Dr Maleki and concluded that if she had taken HPV vaccine it would have protected her from the head and neck cancer as well as Cervical cancer.

(Dr RG Wiseman Pinto is professor of pathology, former HOD, former dean of Goa University also president of South Asian Academy of Cytopathology and Histopathology (SACH))

Related posts:

  1. SPLASH THE COLOURS! FILL UP YOUR PLATE! By Dr Amit Dias

Search

Back to Top