A nurse administers the HPV vaccine to a girl at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Thycaud, in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday as part of the nationwide launch of the HPV vaccination drive. Several girls as young as 14 were given the vaccine as part of a campaign against cervical cancer. | Photo credit: NIRMAL HARINDRAN
HPV vaccination was introduced in Kerala on Saturday as part of a nationwide initiative to protect teenage girls from cervical cancer.
General Education Minister V. Sivankutty launched the HPV vaccination drive. Senior health officials were present on the occasion.
The HPV vaccine, which is provided free of charge as part of the national immunization campaign, is administered to 14-year-old girls at all government health centres. Girls should reach the age of 14 years but should not exceed 15 years.
On Saturday, 14 eligible girls were vaccinated. The state expects the cohort of 14-year-olds in the state to be about 2.6 thousand.
The national HPV vaccination campaign targets 1.15 million girls aged 14 years. The program uses Gardasil, a quadrivalent HPV vaccine that protects against HPV types 16 and 18 (which cause cervical cancer), as well as types 6 and 11.
People can register through the U-WIN portal (directly visit their nearest health center.
Vaccination is voluntary and informed consent from parents/guardians is obtained prior to administration. The special campaign will run in mission mode for three months, during which eligible girls can receive the vaccine daily at designated facilities.
After that, the vaccine will become part of the general immunization schedule and will be available on routine immunization days in all government facilities.
HPV vaccines are among the most widely studied vaccines worldwide, with more than 500 million administered worldwide since 2006. Scientific evidence shows 93-100% effectiveness in preventing cervical cancer caused by the types of HPV covered by the vaccine.
It is estimated that 99.7% of cervical cancers are caused by human papillomavirus (HPV). While most HPV infections are asymptomatic and resolve spontaneously, persistent infection can lead to cervical cancer.
Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer affecting women in India. In addition to cervical cancer, HPV infection can also cause anal, oropharyngeal, vulvar, vaginal, and penile cancer.
However, in Kerala, the incidence of cervical cancer has been steadily declining for the past few years.
The incidence of cervical cancer in the state is eight per 100,000 population (against the national incidence of 11.6/lakh) and thus no longer figures among the top five cancers affecting women in Kerala. The low incidence rate is attributed to huge improvements in women’s health and hygiene, better sexual practices, education and access to healthcare in Kerala.
Kerala launched its own initiative to provide HPV vaccination in November last year for adolescent girls aged 16-17 years. However, this was done as a pilot program only in Kannur district and involved only girls from BPL families.
The initiative was launched using CSR funds and the state used a ‘Make-in-India’ quadrivalent vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India ‘Cervavac’. Vaccines worth ₹16 lakh were procured by the state.
Now that the center will provide the HPV vaccine as part of routine immunization, the state will end its HPV vaccination initiative once the acquired supplies are exhausted, officials said.
Published – 28 Feb 2026 20:29 IST
