What is it used for?

Prevention of the following diseases caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV) types 16 and 18:

• pre-cancerous abnormalities of cells in the cervix (CIN 2/3)
• cervical cancer.

The vaccine has been shown in clinical trials to prevent these diseases in adult women aged 15 to 25 years. The vaccine has also been shown to produce antibodies against HPV in girls and women aged 10 to 25 years.

Warning!

• This vaccine may not provide protection against HPV in everyone who has the vaccine. It will also only provide protection against HPV types 16 and 18. It will not protect against any other sexually-transmitted infections (STIs). This means that after having the vaccine you should still practice safe sex and use condoms to prevent STIs.
• This vaccine should not be used as an alternative to having regular cervical smear tests. This is because no vaccine is 100 per cent effective and this vaccine will not provide protection against types of HPV that are not in the vaccine. It also won't protect you from any cancerous changes that may be caused by an HPV infection you may already have. It is important to keep having regular smear tests.
• People who have an underactive immune system, for example due to a genetic defect, disease such as HIV infection, or treatment with immunosuppressant medicines such as chemotherapy, high-dose corticosteroids, or immunosuppressants used following an organ transplant, may not produce an adequate number of antibodies in response to this vaccine. As a result, the vaccine may be less effective in these people.