English 
Francais 
عربي 
The vaccine for cervical cancer probably available as of 2006
[mis à jour le 15 October 2006 à 15h45]
Following the success of trials in 33 countries, the FDA may well authorise the production of the vaccine to combat human papilloma virus (HPV) by the 4th quarter of 2005. It could become available very soon, according to the manufacturer.
“The manufacturing process is well defined. We could meet global demand without any problem”, says Michael F. Thomas, Vice-President of the Vaccines Division, Merck and Co, which has developed the future “Gardasil”. This vaccine has been the subject of communications in Paris, at the European Cancer Conference (ECCO), and before the European Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ESTRO). It will be the second vaccine to be authorised to prevent a human cancer following the hepatitis B vaccine. It should be available as of 2006. As underlined by Michael Thomas, it will be produced in the United States and distributed both by Merck and by the joint venture Sanofi-Pasteur-MSD.
The first regions to avail of the vaccine will probably be the United States and Europe. Effective against four HPV serogroups, it will join the fight to prevent cancer of the cervix, non-invasive cervical cancers and genital warts. The target groups will, of course, be mainly women: young girls, teenagers and young women aged between 9 and 24 to start with (32 millions in the United States, and 37 million in Europe), but research is continuing. Immunisation could be extended to women aged between 24 and 45, in other words 44 million across the Atlantic and 60 million in Europe. Work on preventing infection by genital warts in men is also on the agenda.
Prevention of cervical cancer will be a considerable advance. There are currently up to 2.3 million cases throughout the world, 80% of which are found in developing countries. With 510,000 new cases every year, this disease is the second biggest cause of death from cancer in women. Genital warts affect 500,000 to one million women per year, according to estimates.
The headlines in 2006 will also touch on other innovations, on both sides of the Atlantic. The forthcoming introduction of vaccines against viral gastroenteritis – caused by rotaviruses – is also raising considerable hopes. These cases of gastroenteritis cause a large number of deaths each year due to severe dehydration. The production of a pentavalent vaccine (effective against five varieties of virus, editor) administered orally will constitute considerable progress. However, it will not solve the problem of diarrhoea caused by bacteria that every year kill millions of children in the least developed countries.
Lastly, a vaccine for adult infections caused by the chicken-pox virus is expected soon. These infections include shingles and very tough post-shingle pain. The latest results of the 3rd phase of clinical trials (38 500 women and men aged 50 and over) have apparently shown a 67% reduction in post-shingles pain and a 51% reduction in shingles. The vaccine, currently in the process of being registered with the FDA since April 2005, has now been submitted to the European Union. The target groups concerned are aged between 50 and 85, thus numbering 79 million in the United States and 130 million in “old” Europe… Source: New England Journal of Medicine (June 2005) and presentation by Michael F Thomas at Rahway (NY). From our special envoy in the United States. Photo : Copyright Sanofi Pasteur MSD
Print this article
Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Send to a friend
Convert to pdf
Copyright Authorization
