According to a study published in The Lancet medical journal on June 4, 2025, the HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccine has reduced the risk of dying from cervical cancer among women under 30 in the United Kingdom to near zero. Experts call this an incredible milestone and a major advance in the fight against cancer.
Conducted by scientists at Queen Mary University of London and funded by Cancer Research UK, the study showed that between 2020 and 2024, no women aged 20–24 died from cervical cancer in England. Without the vaccine, an estimated 23 deaths would have occurred during that period. By comparison, earlier periods saw 25 deaths (2000–2004), 16 (2005–2009), 27 (2010–2014), and 5 (2015–2019) in the same age group.
HPV is a common group of sexually transmitted viruses and the main cause of cervical cancer. The HPV vaccine has been routinely administered to UK teenagers since 2008. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that over 95% of the 660,000 annual cervical cancer cases worldwide are caused by HPV. Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer among women, with roughly 660,000 new cases and 350,000 deaths in 2022—94% of those deaths occurred in low- and middle-income countries.
Many countries are expanding their HPV vaccination programs. India launched free vaccination for 11.5 million 14-year-old girls in February 2025. China added the HPV vaccine to its national immunization program in October 2025. Pakistan also initiated its first national HPV vaccination campaign in September 2025, targeting over 13 million girls. However, programs still face barriers from vaccine skepticism and misinformation on social media, such as false rumors linking the vaccine to infertility—claims that studies have debunked.
