Cervical cancer vaccine trialled in Melbourne

Melbourne’s young women can be the first to take advantage of a vaccine trial in the fight against cervical cancer, which is having outstanding success in its initial US trials.

The Royal Women’s Hospital in Melbourne has announced they are offering healthy young Australian women the opportunity to take part in an international trail for a treatment that may prevent infection with the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), a virus linked to 70% of cervical cancers.

Results of initial US trials show a 100% success rate in the protection of one type of HPV virus, and were published today in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

‘This is the first vaccine to be successful in the fight against viruses that cause gynaecological cancers and is a potentially major breakthrough,’ said Professor Suzanne Garland, principal investigator in the Australian arm of the trial and Director of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, The Royal Women’s Hospital in Melbourne.

The Royal Women’s Hospital is currently seeking nearly 300 healthy women between the ages of 16 and 23 years to take part in a larger trail of HPV virus over the next four years, as part of the international HPV clinical study.

‘The initial trials in the US give impetus for the larger trail of four types of HPV virus currently being conducted at The Women’s, and it is very encouraging. The Australian developed vaccine is given as an injection and could eventually make the smear test redundant,’ Suzanne said.

Cervical cancer is the second leading cause of cancer amongst women and in Australia approximately 900 new cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed each year.

Women wanting to enrol in the F.U.T.U.R.E study can click on the link above or call FREECALL 1800 55 88 66.

For more information on cervical cancer, go to the oncology suite of virtual cancer centre. To read the article in the NEJM, click on the link above.