India’s 1st indigenous cervical cancer vaccine to be launched today; Serum Institute to manufacture vaccine

India will get its indigenous vaccine for cervical cancer on Thursday. The vaccine is expected to make treatment easier for the patients. The vaccine will be launched by the Serum Institute of India (SII) and the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India on 1 September 2022.

The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) had given market authorization for the vaccine on 12 July.   

- This is India's first Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus vaccine (qHPV) against cervical cancer.

- This vaccine will be manufactured by the Serum Institute of India (SII).

“For the first time there will be an Indian HPV vaccine to treat cervical cancer in women that is both affordable and accessible. We look forward to launching it later this year and we thank the #DCGI @MoHFW_INDIA for granting approval today,” CEO Adar Poonawalla said in a Tweet on 12 July.

See Tweet Here:

For the first time there will be an Indian HPV vaccine to treat cervical cancer in women that is both affordable and accessible. We look forward to launching it later this year and we thank the #DCGI @MoHFW_INDIA for granting approval today.

— Adar Poonawalla (@adarpoonawalla) July 12, 2022

Important Details:

According to World Health Organisation’s (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC-WHO), India records around 1.23 cases of cervical cancer annually and almost 67,000 women die everywhere.

- India stands at 5th place in the world in terms reporting cervical cancer.

- Cervical is the second most common type of cancer.

- As per the numbers, cervical cancer is the second biggest reason of death in women ageing between 15 and 44 years. 

- Usually its symptoms are difficult to determine.