Hyderabad: On the occasion of National Girl Child Day on January 25th, Serum Institute of India Pvt Ltd has launched the first indigenous vaccine 'Cervavac' for cervical cancer in women. Based on the results of the earlier study done on this vaccine, it is claimed that it can be almost 100 per cent effective in preventing cervical cancer.
Significantly, cervical cancer is one of the most deadly cancers in women, and its cases are increasing rapidly in the last few years. According to statistics, cervical cancer is detected in more than one lakh women every year in India, out of which about 67,000 women die every year due to this disease.
On the other hand, according to other reports, in our country, 17 per cent of women in the age group of 30 to 69 die from this cancer. Although there are other vaccines available to prevent cervical cancer, it is believed that the percentage of success is relatively high for the indigenous Cervavac vaccine. Significantly, cervical cancer is fatal cancer in women, which is the fourth most prevalent cancer in women worldwide. In India, it is the second most common cancer among women. It mostly occurs in women above 30 years of age.
ETV Bharat spoke to some experts to know more about cervical cancer and its causes, and also tried to know how the vaccine can be beneficial in preventing it. Dr Nidhi Kothari, a gynaecologist from Delhi, says that cervical cancer occurs in the cervix of women and for this mainly some types of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) are considered responsible. It is important to understand that not every type of HPV is responsible for cervical cancer.
HPV is a sexually transmitted virus and usually, due to infection, its acute symptoms are not detectable soon. And by the time the symptoms start appearing, the infection already does a lot of damage. Due to it being an STD, the patient's partner may also be infected by the time it gets detected.
Only a few types of HPV are responsible for cervical cancer, but initially, after coming under the influence of the respective virus, there are some other factors which increase the risk of cancer. Out of these, a weak immune system is a major factor. For example, it takes 15 to 20 years for cervical cancer to develop in women with a normal immune system, even after exposure to HPV, but in women with a weakened immune system, this cancer can spread in only 5 to 10 years.
Dr Nidhi says that cervical cancer first begins to grow in the cells of the cervix, the lowest part of the uterus. The cervix is connected to the vagina. This infection starts in the form of a wart which later starts turning into cancer cells. She says that the pre-cancer stage of cervical cancer is very long (about 10 to 15 years). Meanwhile, if this disease is detected through timely tests or other means, then treatment is possible. Human papillomavirus includes a spectrum of more than 100 types of viruses, out of which only a few types such as HPV 16 and HPV 18 can cause cervical cancer. If statistics are to be believed, 83 per cent of cervical cancers are caused by only HPV 16 or 18 viruses.
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Multiple factors play an important role in the growth and spread of this cancer after getting in contact with it. Factors such as prolonged use of hormonal contraceptives, exposure to chemicals and other carcinogens, early sexual activity, multiple sexual partners, tobacco use or smoking, and co-infections with HIV, such as chlamydia, trachomatis, and herpes simplex virus Type-2 etc. Apart from these, genetic and immunological host factors and viral factors also sometimes increase the risk of this cancer.
Out of many types of HPV, some are kept in the 'low risk' and some in the 'high risk' category. The high-risk types of these can lead to some other serious diseases including cancer. The HPV vaccine acts as a shield against troublesome types, which is largely successful. The HPV vaccine is considered beneficial in preventing not just cervical but also vulvar or other genital and some other types of cancer. This vaccine fights the types of HPV that cause these cancers.
So far, vaccines (Gardasil 9 and Cervarix) from two globally licensed companies (Gardasil and GlaxoSmithKline) have been available for the prevention of cervical cancer in India. Their success rate has been considered up to 70 per cent. These vaccines can be given from nine years to 26 years in normal conditions.
According to the information received, the Cervavac vaccine can be very effective in preventing cervical cancer, vulvar or other genital cancer, anal and oropharyngeal cancer as well as some other types of cancer. But it is considered to be 100 per cent effective, especially in preventing cervical cancer. Earlier studies conducted to know about the success and efficacy of this vaccine have revealed that this vaccine remains more active against four strains of HPV virus - Type 6, Type 11, Type 16 and Type 18 and the risk of infection caused by them lowers due to it.
According to the study, this quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine works by stimulating an immune response against four different antigens and other microorganisms and elicits a strong antibody response in the body. Regarding this vaccine, it is believed that if this vaccine is given to girls between nine and fourteen years of age before coming into sexual contact, then they can get 99 per cent success in preventing the spread of cervical cancer.
Dr Nidhi Kothari says that the vaccine is very beneficial in preventing cervical cancer, which is why she advises most of the young female patients who come to her to get it administered. But along with the vaccine, it is very important that after the age of 21, women should also get their routine checkups done at regular intervals. Especially getting a 'Pap-Smear' test done every three years can be beneficial not only in the case of cervical cancer but also in the case of many other serious and common diseases related to the uterus and genitals. Because of getting the information about the disease on time, it can also be treated on time.
