Janet Ogundepo The Assistant Immunisation Officer of the Lagos State Primary Healthcare Board, Dr Adebayo Adeniji, has urged parents to allow their girls between ages nine and 14 to receive the free Human Papilloma Virus vaccine before the end of 2024. He stated that this timeline was due to the policy that by January 1, 2025, only nine-year-old girls will be allowed to take the vaccine in the Primary Healthcare Centres. Adeniji said this during the Town hall and sensitisation meeting with stakeholders and Community Leaders in the Agege and Orile Agege Local Government Areas organised by the LSPHCB in partnership with the Medical Women Association and funded by Pathfinder International, on Tuesday.
Speaking to PUNCH Healthwise on the sidelines of the event, Adeniji said, “Every state has till the end of this year. The National Policy still states that whatever mass vaccination campaign for HPV ends this year. We have started routinisation although they are still in phases, that is the reason we have the leeway to vaccinate girls ages nine to 14 now.
“After December 31, only girls just turning 9 years old would be vaccinated. By January 1, 2025, routinisation has automatically set in and routine vaccines have only a specific age so from next year, only nine-year-olds will be given the vaccines.” He reiterated that parents with girls aged 10 to 14 should ensure they receive the vaccination before 2025, emphasising that this was the purpose of the intensified sensitisation and awareness efforts.
Adeniji, futher noted that plans were still in place to vaccinate over 80 per cent of girls aged 9-14 by the end of 2024. According to the World Health Organisation, HPV is a common virus that is transmitted through sexual contact and is responsible for 99 per cent of cases of cervical cancer, globally. It adds that cervical cancer is caused by persistent infection with HPV and it is the fourth most common cancer in women globally, with about 660,000 new cases and about 350,000 deaths in 2022.
The WHO added that cervical cancer can be cured if diagnosed and treated at an early stage, noting that vaccination against HPV and screening and treatment of pre-cancer lesions are effective strategies to prevent cervical cancer. According to the United Nations, cervical cancer is the third most common cancer and the second most frequent cause of death among women aged 15 to 44 years in Nigeria. It adds that in 2020, 12,000 new cases and 8,000 deaths were recorded from cervical cancer.
To further stem the tide of cervical cancer, the Nigerian government in October 2023, introduced the single-dose HPV vaccine into its routine immunisation and embarked on a campaign to vaccinate over 7.7 million girls between the ages of nine and 14. The United Nations Children’s Fund stated in October 2023 that it has procured 15 million HPV vaccines on behalf of the Nigerian government and aims to protect over 16 million girls by 2025.
During his presentation, Adeniji explained what cervical cancer and the HPV vaccine are and dispelled rumours about the vaccine, which he stated has marred its uptake since its introduction. The doctor reassured the participants that the vaccine was safe and effective against HPV and urged the community and religious leaders present to encourage their members to allow their girls to take the vaccine. On her part, the president of the Medical Women Association of Nigeria, Lagos State Branch, Dr Funmi Ige, emphasized the association’s passion for women and children, noting that when they are well taken care of, the society and nation benefit as a whole.
She urged the participants to ensure their girls between nine and 14 receive the HPV vaccine to help reduce the scourge of cervical cancer in the country. “If we take care of our girls who are around the ages of nine to 14, there are chances that they would not have been engaged in sexual activities and if they get the vaccine, the chances of them getting cervical cancer would be minimal. Please let’s allow our girls aged nine to 14 who have not been sexually exposed to get this vaccine, it is free,” Ige said.
The MWAN I president further stated that the state had recorded low turnout and uptake of the vaccine and urged the participants to disregard rumours about the vaccine. Additionally, the Medical Officer of Health, Orile Agege, Dr Esther Dabiri, decried the low uptake of the HPV vaccine and the low turnout of women for cervical screening, which is available in the family planning section of the PHCs. Also, the Media and Communication Officer of Pathfinder International, Bayo Ewuola, stated that Lagos had the lowest uptake of the HPV vaccine in the country, noting that the organisation was working with the Nigeria Cancer Society and MWAN to ensure increased awareness and uptake of the vaccine.
He stated that the organisation would support the participants in their awareness programs on the HPV vaccine uptake. Another representative from Pathfinder International, Ayo Adebusoye, thanked the participants for attending and encouraged them to increase awareness about the HPV vaccine. Copyright PUNCH All rights reserved.
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