HPV vaccine plunges cervical cancer death to nearly zero for young women

A groundbreaking study published in The Lancet reveals that the risk of dying from cervical cancer has plunged to nearly zero for young women in England who received the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine during early adolescence, or 12 or 13 years old. Researchers say no cervical cancer deaths were recorded among women aged 20 to 24 between 2020 and 2024, noting that the World Health Organization is working to make vaccinations a global priority. England adopted a school-based vaccination program in 2008.  “Our findings provide the first robust national-level evidence,” researchers write, “that high HPV vaccination coverage is associated with a substantial reduction in cervical cancer deaths.”