NEW VACCINE PROGRAM TO PROTECT GIRLS AGAINST CANCER

VICTORIA – Beginning this fall, girls in British Columbia entering grades 6 and 9 will be eligible for a free vaccine that will prevent 70 per cent of cervical cancers, Health Minister George Abbott announced today.

“The recently approved HPV vaccine provides us with an opportunity to vaccinate against the vast majority of cervical cancers in women, and we believe our long-term cancer prevention strategy will prevent women from developing cancer in years to come,” said Abbott. “We want parents and students to know that this vaccine protects girls and women from cancer, and we’ll be sending home more information about the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and the HPV vaccine before the end of the school year so they can make informed decisions when the vaccination program begins this fall.”

HPV is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections in Canada and cervical cancer is the second most common type of cancer for women between the ages of 20 and 40. According to the BC Cancer Agency, approximately 143 women in B.C. will be diagnosed with cervical cancer this year and 55 will die from the disease.

“This is an important step forward and complements our current efforts in the fight against cervical cancer,” said Dr. Andy Coldman, BC Cancer Agency vice-president of population oncology. “The agency’s Cervical Cancer Screening program, created in 1949, has already helped reduce cervical cancer rates in B.C. by 70 per cent and the HPV vaccine immunization program will help reduce that rate even further.”

The provincial immunization program is being launched on the advice of the National Advisory Committee on Immunization, the provincial health officer and the health authorities, as well as agencies of the Provincial Health Services Authority, including the BC Centre for Disease Control, BC Cancer Agency, BC Women’s Hospital and BC Children’s Hospital. For the first three years of the program, female students in grades 6 and 9 will be eligible to receive the vaccine, which requires three doses given over six months. After this three-year, catch-up program, the vaccine will be provided during Grade 6 only.

“This is a vaccine that is safe and very effective against the two most common cancer-causing strains of HPV,” noted Dr. Monika Naus, head of the immunization program at the BC Centre for Disease Control. “We still want women to have regular Pap tests, because the current vaccine does not prevent all cancer-causing HPV strains, and early detection of pre-cancerous changes is key.”

The HPV vaccine is currently being used in 93 countries around the world, including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and most European and Scandinavian countries. Information about the new HPV program and answers to common questions about immunization are available at www.immunizebc.ca.

Information about the Human Papillomavirus is available through the BC HealthGuide at www.bchealthguide.org, by calling the BC Nurseline at (604) 215-4700 in the greater Vancouver area, toll-free at 1 (866) 215-4700, or by speaking with a family physician.

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Media contact:	Michelle Stewart Communications Director Ministry of Health 250 812-5571 (cell) 250 952-1887 (media line)

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