Nigeria has launched a large-scale vaccination campaign against human papillomavirus (HPV) in order to significantly decrease the incidence of cervical cancer in the country.
The nationwide campaign officially started on Tuesday, with the goal of vaccinating 16.6 million girls between the ages of nine and 14 by the end of 2025. The initiative is now included in Nigeria's national immunization schedule and involves collaboration with schools, as well as leaders from religious and civil society groups.
HPV, typically transmitted through intimate sexual contact, can, in a small proportion of cases, cause cervical cancer. There are more than 100 types of HPV, of which at least 13 are cancer-causing. HPV vaccines are now available worldwide and have the potential to reduce the incidence of cervical and other anogenital cancers. In 2021, a study revealed that the HPV vaccine was reducing cases of cervical cancer by nearly 90%.
According to Muhammad Ali Pate, Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, the program is critical because approximately 12,000 women in Nigeria are diagnosed with advanced-stage cervical cancer every, and about 90% of these women do not survive.
"The loss of more than eight thousand Nigerian women yearly from a disease that is largely preventable is completely unacceptable. Cervical cancer is mostly caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), and parents can avoid physical and financial pain by protecting their children with a single dose of the vaccine," he said at the event.
The minister urged "fellow parents," political leaders and activists to ensure that this generation of girls effectively interrupts the preventable loss of lives to cervical cancer "in addition to other untold hardships, losses, and pains." He noted that the introduction of the HPV vaccine marks a step towards improving health and well-being of present and future generations of Nigerian women and adolescents.
"The fact is that many women, many girls remain undiagnosed, unvaccinated and untreated from cervical cancer in Nigeria is heart-wrenching, therefore this is a very proud moment for me as a Nigerian as the country introduces HPV vaccine into the country," said Zainab Shinkafi-Bagudu, a consultant pediatrician and an advocate for women's health.
According to a report from Information Centre on HPV and Cancer, Africa has a population of 425.68 million women aged 15 years and older who are at risk of developing cervical cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that HPV infections cause around 68,000 cases of cervical cancer per year in Africa.
Cervical cancer ranks as the 2nd most frequent cancer among women in Africa, accounting for 22% of all female cancers annually. It is estimated that 117,316 women on the continent are diagnosed with cervical cancer every year and 76,745 die from the disease.