Reporters get facts on HPV vaccine programme

Media personnel from newspapers, radio and television gathered in Vientiane on Tuesday to discuss reporting on the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programme, which will be rolled out next month.
The meeting was attended by the UNICEF Representative to Laos, along with senior ministry officials and invited guests.
Participants discussed the HPV vaccine and its benefits for young women and girls in protecting them against pre-cervical cancer.
The HPV vaccine is given to young girls to build immunity against the types of HPV that cause over 70 percent of cervical cancer and will be introduced in the national immunisation programme next month.
Speaking at the HPV media meeting, Deputy Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, and President of the National Commission for the Advancement of Women, Mothers and Children (NCAWMC), Mr Savankhone Razmountry, said the government aims to strengthen disease prevention, and to enable girls and women to access more health services.
Laos has been providing the HPV vaccine to girls to prevent them from getting infections that can lead to cervical cancer. The vaccine is very safe and very effective, and highly beneficial for young women.
Director General of the Department of Hygiene and Health Promotion at the Ministry of Health, Dr Phonepaseuth Ounaphom, said the HPV vaccine will be given to girls at schools across the country.
Vaccinations will be offered to over 360,000 girls aged 10-14, regardless of whether they are enrolled in school or have dropped out. 
Many studies conducted in developing and developed countries have found that the vaccine is safe and effective. Over 300 million doses have been distributed worldwide, he said.
It was the duty of communities and leaders to make sure that all eligible girls are given the vaccine, he added.
Laos will be part of a select number of countries worldwide that include the HPV vaccine in their immunisation programmes.
In Laos, about 320 girls develop cervical cancer each year and more than half die as a result.
Laos conducted a successful HPV vaccination demonstration programme from 2013 to 2015, reaching almost 15,000 girls in the capital and Vientiane province, achieving 94 percent and 97 percent coverage, respectively. 
The vaccines are funded by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Lao government, World Health Organisation, UNICEF and partners, which are supporting the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education and Sports in administering the vaccine.

By Phetphoxay Sengpaseuth
(Latest Update February 26, 2020)