November 21, 2002
A Vaccine against Human Papillomavirus Type 16
|
Human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) is sexually transmitted and is present in 50 percent of cervical cancers. This randomized, double-blind trial assessed the effectiveness of a vaccine that consists of HPV-16 L1 virus-like particles in women who were seronegative for HPV-16. The vaccine was highly effective in preventing HPV-16 infection.
This study may have important public health implications, since immunization of uninfected women against HPV-16 infection should reduce the incidence of cervical cancer. Of the women who received the vaccine, 99.7 percent had seroconversion and none became infected with HPV-16 after a median follow-up of 17.4 months.
