HPV vaccine uptake drops

Human papillomavirus, or HPV, is a common virus spread through sexual contact, and the vaccine is meant to block infections before they can later turn into cancer. In Ireland, school uptake has now fallen below three in four students. (independent.ie) The Irish Independent reported on April 22 that school take-up of the HPV vaccine in Ireland had dropped to 74.9%, after an Oireachtas health committee heard false claims about side effects were dragging confidence down. Ireland’s Health Protection Surveillance Centre says school vaccine figures are recorded through the school immunisation system and can change as data are updated. (independent.ie; hpsc.ie) Irish ministers announced on January 15, 2026 that the Laura Brennan catch-up programme would expand through schools, starting with fifth- and sixth-year students who missed earlier shots. The Health Service Executive says the programme covers both male and female students and will extend to second- through fifth-year students in the 2026-27 school year. (gov.ie; hse.ie) Ireland’s own cervical cancer elimination plan uses the World Health Organization benchmark of vaccinating 90% of girls by age 15, with screening and treatment targets alongside it. The 74.9% figure leaves Ireland short of that vaccination goal as it tries to make cervical cancer rare by 2040. (assets.hse.ie) The vaccine is aimed at a virus that causes most cervical cancers and also causes other cancers in men and women. The World Health Organization says more than 95% of cervical cancer is caused by sexually transmitted HPV and says vaccinating boys is recommended where feasible and affordable. (who.int) That is the context for the push now coming from clinicians in India. In a report published April 23, Dr H. S. Randhawa in Jalandhar said boys should be vaccinated too because males can carry HPV without symptoms and there is no Pap-smear-style screening test for them. (tribuneindia.com) Randhawa said Punjab’s move to start one-dose HPV vaccination for adolescent girls should be paired with public education about boys, and he pointed to penile cancer in men plus head and neck cancers and genital warts linked to the virus. He also said the vaccine is recommended from ages 9 to 26 for males and called anti-vaccine claims about side effects “propaganda.” (tribuneindia.com) In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends routine HPV vaccination at ages 11 or 12, says it can start at age 9, and recommends catch-up vaccination through age 26 for people not adequately vaccinated earlier. The agency says the vaccine prevents new HPV infections but does not treat infections that are already there. (cdc.gov) The immediate policy fight is over uptake, but the longer-term pressure lands on cancer prevention systems. Ireland’s health strategy pairs vaccination with CervicalCheck screening for ages 25 to 65, and lower vaccination coverage means screening programmes will carry more of the burden that vaccination is supposed to prevent. (gov.ie; assets.hse.ie) For now, the split screen is clear: Ireland is trying to recover missed doses through schools, while Indian doctors are arguing the target should widen beyond girls alone. Both campaigns are trying to stop the same virus before it reaches screening clinics and cancer wards years later. (hse.ie; tribuneindia.com; who.int)