HPV vaccine slashes cervical cancer rates across society

The NHS HPV vaccination programme is preventing the highest number of cervical cancer cases in the most deprived groups, according to our latest study of data from England.

The findings, which reflect the fact that more deprived groups have higher rates of cervical cancer, show that the HPV vaccine is reaching people from all backgrounds.

In 2021, the same research team, led by Professor Peter Sasieni, found that offering the HPV vaccine to girls aged between 12 and 13 prevents almost 9 in 10 cervical cancers. Still, some scientists had been concerned that differing levels of vaccine uptake could be increasing cervical cancer inequalities.

There’s more work to do to address those inequalities, but it’s now clear the HPV vaccine is a big part of the solution. Sasieni’s team at Queen Mary University of London estimates that it has prevented more than three times as many cases in the most deprived group in England (around 190) than in the least (around 60).

More work to do to prevent cervical cancer

Around 3,300 people are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the UK every year.* Research has shown that the HPV vaccine, combined with cervical screening, can bring that number right down.  

However, the percentages of eligible people receiving an HPV vaccine and attending screening have both fallen in the wake of the COVID pandemic.  

And, although this research shows that the HPV vaccine is preventing cervical cancer in all socioeconomic groups, rates are still higher in people from deprived backgrounds. 

That’s why we’re calling on the government to do more to ensure that as many young people as possible get the HPV vaccination. We’re also pushing for better reporting on uptake by deprivation and ethnicity, along with more research, to help us understand how to reach those most at risk. 

Our scientists helped to prove the link between HPV and cervical cancer 25 years ago. That discovery made it clear that we could use HPV vaccines to prevent cervical cancer. It also helped improve cervical cancer screening.

Thanks to these scientific developments, cervical cancer rates in the UK have fallen by almost a third since the early 1990s.**

Who is eligible for the HPV vaccine?

After decades of research, the HPV vaccination programme was first introduced for girls aged 12-13 in England in 2008. Since September 2019, the vaccine has also been available to boys of the same age. Anyone who missed their vaccine can request it through the NHS up to the age of 25.  

The vaccine is also available to men who have sex with men and some transgender people up to the age of 45 through sexual health and HIV clinics. 

* Based on the average annual number of new cases of cervical cancer (ICD10 C53) diagnosed in the United Kingdom in the years 2017-2019.

* Based on the percentage change in incidence rates from 14 cases per 100,000 women in the UK between 1991-1993 to 10 cases per 100,000 women between 2017-2019.