Researchers from Harvard have reported that it may not be cost effective to include boys in a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination program. The details of this study were published online in the British Medical Journal on October 8, 2009. The goal of the current study was to assess the cost effectiveness of routinely vaccinating preadolescent boys, as is recommended in girls. These authors suggested that cost effectiveness of vaccinating both boys and girls would improve if the vaccine gave life-long protection against all HPV-related diseases or if the cost of vaccination fell. These authors concluded that “including boys in an HPV vaccination program generally exceeds conventional thresholds of good value for money, even under favorable conditions of vaccine protection and health benefits.”

The FDA Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee agreed on the efficacy, immunogenicity and safety data of Merck & Co Inc’s . The clinical trials support the use of GARDASIL [Human Papillomavirus Quadrivalent (Types 6, 11, 16 and 18) Vaccine, Recombinant] for boys and men aged 9 to 26 years for the prevention of genital warts caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) types 6 and 11.

A new study published in The Lancet depicts that GlaxoSmithKline’s human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is highly effective at preventing precancerous cervical lesions that can lead to cervical cancer. The researchers said that the HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvanted vaccine was as much as 98% effective against HPV-16/18, and between 37% and 54% effective against 12 other cancer-causing HPV types.