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25 April 2022
Cervical cancer Colorectal cancer Head and neck cancer Infections Liver cancer

World Immunization Week 2022: Spotlight on vaccination to reduce the global cancer burden

To mark World Immunization Week 2022, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) is highlighting the critical role that vaccination can play in preventing a substantial portion of the future global burden of cancer.

Infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human papillomavirus (HPV) together caused an estimated 1 million new cases of cancer in 2018, more than 5% of all cancer cases diagnosed that year. HBV infection was responsible for 360 000 new cases and HPV infection for 690 000 new cases, even though infection with HBV and the most carcinogenic HPV types can be prevented through vaccination.

HBV leads to liver cirrhosis and/or liver cancer in about 25% of people who develop chronic infection. In countries with a high prevalence of HBV infection, most of these chronic infections occur as a consequence of mother-to-child transmission and can be prevented by early childhood vaccination, including a dose of vaccine within 24 hours after birth. Furthermore, elimination of hepatitis caused by hepatitis D virus is directly linked to successful elimination of HBV. Hence, elimination of HBV through immunization should ultimately eliminate hepatitis D virus infections.

HPV infection is responsible for almost all new cases of cervical cancer and anal cancer, as well as a large proportion of head and neck cancers. In 2020, an estimated 604 000 women were diagnosed with cervical cancer worldwide and about 342 000 women died from the disease. Nearly 90% of these deaths occurred in countries with limited resources.

In April 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE) reviewed recent evidence, including a 10-year follow-up study of a cohort of about 17 000 participants conducted by IARC, and concluded that a single dose of HPV vaccine delivers solid protection against HPV that is comparable to that of two-dose schedules.

IARC predicts that by 2040 almost 800 000 new cases of cervical cancer will be diagnosed per year. Almost all of these cases could be prevented if efficient vaccination and prevention programmes are put in place. IARC also estimates that by 2040 about 1.4 million new cases of liver cancer will be diagnosed per year. Although not all of these cases will be caused by hepatitis infection, robust vaccination and prevention programmes could significantly reduce this number.

Efficient vaccination programmes against HBV and HPV are crucial to reduce the global burden of cancer. Immunization against HBV starting at birth is the foundation of the prevention of perinatal and horizontal transmission of HBV. For HPV, the conclusion by SAGE about a single dose makes vaccination programmes much more affordable and cost-effective for public health decision-makers. This will potentially enable those who currently lack access to the vaccine – nearly 90% of adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries – to be as protected against HPV-associated cancers as their counterparts in high-income countries.

Read the article “Vaccine efficacy against persistent human papillomavirus (HPV) 16/18 infection at 10 years after one, two, and three doses of quadrivalent HPV vaccine in girls in India: a multicentre, prospective, cohort study”

Read more about the conclusion by SAGE to support a single-dose schedule against HPV

WATCH THE VIDEO

IARC’s Dr Catherine de Martel highlights the importance of vaccination against hepatitis B virus

Publication status

Published in section: IARC News

Publication date: 25 April, 2022, 12:02

Direct link: https://www.iarc.who.int/news-events/world-immunization-week-2022-spotlight-on-vaccination-to-reduce-the-global-cancer-burden/

© Copyright International Agency on Research for Cancer 2024

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