HPV vaccine cuts cervical cancer deaths under 30 to
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- Queen Mary University of London researchers found girls vaccinated against HPV at ages 12-13 have virtually zero risk of dying from cervical cancer before age 30, and vaccinated women aged 30-34 face a 63% lower relative risk of death from the disease.
- For the first time in recorded history, no women aged 20-24 in England died from cervical cancer between 2020 and 2024, according to the Cancer Research UK-funded study published in The Lancet.
- Lead author Peter Sasieni estimates HPV vaccination has prevented nearly 200 young women from dying from cervical cancer in England since the jab was introduced in 2008, which prevents about 90% of cervical cancers.
- The study flags vaccine uptake has dropped from close to 90% pre-pandemic to 75% nationally and 60% in London, with Sasieni warning this could cause 15-25 avoidable deaths per year in young women and about 200 preventable deaths annually overall.
- Cancer Research UK CEO Michelle Mitchell and The Eve Appeal lead nurse Helen Hyndman both called for urgent action, noting the UK is now on track to eliminate cervical cancer by 2050 rather than the original 2024 target.
- The NHS says it aims to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040 through combined HPV vaccination and cervical screening, while WHO's global strategy targets vaccinating 90% of girls by age 15, screening 70% of women, and treating 90% of those with cervical disease by 2030.
Why it matters: The study provides the strongest evidence yet that HPV vaccination effectively prevents cervical cancer deaths at the population level, with the historic zero-death milestone in 20-24-year-olds underscoring the vaccine's life-saving power. But the post-pandemic collapse in uptake — from roughly 90% to 75% nationally and 60% in London — means the UK could see an estimated 200 preventable cervical cancer deaths each year and a two-decade delay in elimination targets without swift intervention.
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