‘No one has to suffer’: Preventing cervical cancer with vaccination

Dr. Sarah Kean talks about cervical cancer, the effectiveness of the HPV vaccine and what she wants parents to know.

The rate of cervical cancer cases is rising in Canada, despite the federal government’s goal of eliminating the disease by 2040.

Numbers from the government show that though the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is highly effective at preventing 90 per cent of cervical cancers, Manitoba has only reached a 72 per cent vaccination rate.

Dr. Sarah Kean, a gynecological oncologist, explained this type of cancer impacts the cervix, which is the bottom portion of the uterus.

She said it is exclusively caused by HPV—an infection that is spread through skin-to-skin contact.

“[Cervical cancer] can be very survivable if it’s caught at an early stage,” she said in an interview with CTV Your Morning Winnipeg on Tuesday.

“But if you have more advanced disease, then the treatments that are available can sometimes be quite costly in terms of side effects, or (the disease) certainly can be fatal.”

The HPV vaccine first became available in the early 2000s. At the time, it targeted four strains of the virus. Since then, it has evolved into a nine-strain vaccine, including seven of the most common cancer-causing strains.

Kean said the vaccine can greatly reduce a person’s chance of getting cervical cancer.

“It is such an effective (vaccine) with a really good immune response,” she said.

Kean noted the combination of the vaccine and proper screening could altogether eradicate HPV-related cancers.

She said the disease has a long “prodromal” or pre-cancer phase, explaining that if you detect the cells before they become cancerous, you can easily treat and get rid of them.

“Between robust vaccinations and good screening programs, literally no one has to suffer from this cancer,” she said.

“It can be completely eliminated.”

Currently, HPV vaccines are administered in schools to students in Grade 6.

Kean said there is an opt-in program, which means parents are required to sign a permission slip for their child to get the vaccine.

“If you’re under 15, you just need two vaccines, and then you have immunity for life, effectively,” she said.

Manitoba also has a “once eligible, always eligible” program, which removes cost barriers for those who didn’t get the vaccine in Grade 6.

“It’s a lifesaving vaccine,” Kean said.

• With files from CTV’s Rachel Lagacé