India Launches Free Nationwide HPV Vaccine for Adolescent Girls
The Union Health Ministry is launching a nationwide, voluntary, and free Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination program for 14-year-old girls, utilizing the quadrivalent Gardasil vaccine to protect against HPV types 16 and 18, primary causes of cervical cancer. This initiative, supported by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, aims to provide maximum preventive benefit before potential exposure and will be administered at designated government health facilities by trained medical professionals. Given that cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among Indian women and largely preventable through vaccination, this program directly addresses the significant disease burden by preventing HPV infection, a key step towards eradicating cervical cancer.
John Q. Hosedrinker