Gardasil HPV vaccine now available at Shanghai hospitals to women under the age of 45

Until Thursday, women on the mainland had immediate access only to a more limited version of the vaccine

Gardasil, a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine covering the two high-risk strains responsible for about 70 percent of cervical cancers and two lower-risk strains that cause 90 percent of genital warts, is now available in Shanghai hospitals for people under the age of 45.

Until Thursday, mainland Chinese women had immediate access only to a more limited version of the vaccine called Cervarix, developed by British pharmaceutical conglomerate GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which protects against the two highest risk strains of the virus and is designed for women between the ages of 9 and 25.

China’s Food and Drug Administration finally approved Cervarix for domestic sale in July 2016, more than a decade after the advent of the first HPV vaccine. Before it was introduced to the Chinese market last year, women from the mainland seeking HPV immunization had to travel abroad, most often to Hong Kong, where the vaccination can be relatively expensive.

According to the HPV Information Centre, cervical cancer is the second most prevalent form of cancer among Chinese women aged 15–44 and causes approximately 30,000 deaths every year. While expanding access to the vaccine and broadening the spectrum of ages for which it is available should reduce the incidence of cervical cancer, awareness and cost remain major obstacles.

Sui Long, chief gynecologist at Fudan University’s OBGYN Hospital, where the first Gardasil injections were administered on Thursday, told China Daily that “only 15 percent of women on the Chinese mainland have heard of the vaccines.”

With the cost of the full vaccination process — which entails three injections over the course of three months — estimated at 2,400 yuan, immunization will likely remain unaffordable for those most vulnerable to contracting HPV. “Most cervical cancer patients are on low incomes,” Long said.

To ensure that broader availability of the vaccine translates into better access, Fudan University’s OBGYN hospital, one of 287 in Shanghai that will carry Gardasil, is taking appointments by WeChat and offering regular follow-up uterine screenings. According to China Daily, by Thursday morning it had already arranged 119 appointments.