National healthcare workers completed the first round of HPV vaccinations for schoolgirls in Grahamstown last week. The HPV vaccine protects against a deadly sexually transmitted virus that could be responsible for more than 50 percent of cases of cervical cancer.
National healthcare workers completed the first round of HPV vaccinations for schoolgirls in Grahamstown last week. The HPV vaccine protects against a deadly sexually transmitted virus that could be responsible for more than 50 percent of cases of cervical cancer.
The Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) is sexually transmitted and causes genital warts, but has, more importantly, linked to cervical cancer.
Cervical cancer is the leading cause of deaths from cancer in Southern African women.
There are many strains of HPV, but strains 16 and 18 cause cervical cancer, while strains 6 and 11 cause genital warts.
Last year the Department of Health began roll out of the HPV vaccine to girls in Grade 4 at all public schools.
The programme includes two injections of Cervarix six months apart.
“The HPV vaccine is offered to all schools with Grade 4,” explained the Health Promotion directorate at the Head Office of the Eastern Cape Department of Health, “The Makana sub-district has some 60 schools.”
The standard dosage of Cervarix, or the alternative injection Gardasil, is three injections.
Cervarix covers strains 16 and 18 while Gardasil covers 16, 18, 11 and 6.
The government’s decision to only do two is because of the age of those they are vaccinating.
According to package inserts girls between the ages of 9 and 14 years old can have only two injections, as they build up enough anti-bodies from that dosage.
“GSK has embarked on two clinical trials, one lasting four years, explained Clayton Cherry, Cervarix representative.
Cherry said the two doses for girls in this age range was as effective as the three dosages for older women.
This programme has been successfully undertaken in other parts of South Africa.
Its success is often based in the positive response and cooperation from the parents of the children.
HPV is of specific concern in South Africa because those with HIV are more susceptible to the virus due to their weaker immune system.
They are at a greater risk of developing cervical cancer, genital warts or both.
Dr Barbara Bull, a General Practitioner at Grahamstown High Street practice Gainsford and Partners, considers the HPV vaccination to be one of the biggest medical breakthroughs in our time.
“I think it is fantastic that they are rolling it out,” said Bull.
She the lack of a vaccination programme at private schools was a concern.
“I don’t see an effective systematic approach [to vaccinations],” she said.
“It is on an opportunistic basis [that private schoolgirls get vaccinated].”
This is also the case with students at Rhodes University.
Currently students can only get the vaccinations at clinics or private doctors.
They are either required to pay high fees, or are only slightly covered by their medical aid.
The HPV vaccination costs R840 for each Gardasil shot and R856 for each shot of Cervarix.
When on Discovery Health medical aid, this price is slightly lower at R677.
“We would love to do it here. There has been a lot of interest from students,” said Heather Ferreira, Head nurse at the Health Care Centre.
“The cost price of each injection is so high, though.”
There has been conversation about charging the price to the student accounts of those who get vaccinated.
