Study Of Costa Rican Women Shows HPV Vaccine Of Little Benefit To Women Over Age 40

Main Category: Cervical Cancer / HPV Vaccine
Article Date: 26 Feb 2010 - 5:00 PDT


Women older than age 40 are not likely to receive a substantial benefit from vaccination against the human papillomavirus, according to a study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, the New York Times reports. Although HPV infection is more common in older women, the study found that the rate of newly detected cases declined with age, from 35% of cases in women ages 18 through 25 to 13.5% of cases in women age 42 and older. Study author Cecilia Rodriguez of the Costa Rica-based Inciensa Foundation said, "Because the HPV vaccine can only prevent infections, and these women are not getting that many new infections, the potential benefit of HPV vaccination among older women is very limited" (Rabin, New York Times, 2/24).

Merck's HPV vaccine, Gardasil, helps block four of the most common HPV strains -- two types that cause 70% of cervical cancer cases and two other types that cause 90% of genital warts cases. The vaccine is approved by FDA for use in girls and women ages nine through 26. Merck is seeking FDA approval to market Gardasil for cervical cancer and genital warts prevention in women up to age 45, and it recently presented the agency with data from a study the company believes shows that the vaccine is effective for women ages 24 through 45 (Women's Health Policy Report, 2/17).

Rodriguez's study, which was supported by NIH, followed more than 9,000 Costa Rican women ages 19 through 97. The women were screened for carcinogenic HPV infections and precursors to cervical cancer. Rodriguez said that in older women, cervical cancer often develops decades after initial infection with a carcinogenic virus. Across all age groups, new infections typically cleared up without treatment within about two years (New York Times, 2/24).

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