Category: Vaccine

Kottayam: Puthuppally MLA Chandy Oommen has come up with an explanation for denying Covid vaccine for his father former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy amid the heated debate on the side effects of Covishield, a popular vaccine against the contagious disease. Taking to his Facebook page on Wednesday, he justified that he was afraid to take his sick father to receive vaccine as he was apprehensive of its side effects. Condemning the allegations against his family over denying proper medical care to his father, he demanded an apology from the people behind it.

No other son should face such a situation. Those who were behind the allegation should apologise to the Kerala society, Chandy told media here after his Facebook live.

We only avoided the vaccine. But he had undergone all other treatments for his disease. The media which circulated the news on denial of treatment to Oommen Chandy must issue an apology, he added.

During the Puthuppally bypoll, the LDF had used the alleged denial of treatment to the former CM as a weapon against the UDF.

The vaccine row UK-headquartered pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca has admitted that in "very rare cases", its COVID-19 vaccine can cause a blood clot-related side-effect but the causal link is unknown, according to court papers being quoted in the UK media. The Daily Telegraph reported that in a legal document submitted to the High Court in London in February for a group action brought by 51 claimants, AstraZeneca admitted that the vaccine developed with the University of Oxford to protect against COVID-19 may cause Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS) in "very rare cases".

The AstraZeneca Vaxzevria vaccine, also manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, was marketed in India as Covishield. It was the major vaccine administered to people across India.

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Amid Covishield row, Chandy Oommen justifies reluctance to take Oommen Chandy for Covid jab | Onmanorama - Onmanorama

The Covid-19 pandemic was one of the worst in modern history that raged across the world killing millions in its wake. After it began its deathly journey in 2019, the wave took multiple turns only to be curtailed by the rapid development of vaccines that helped slow it down and eventually kill its staggering pace of transmission.

The vaccine development process against Coronavirus was mired with debates over the rush of it and its early success.

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British pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca's admittance in court documents that its vaccine, known as Covishield in India, may cause a rare side effect, has once again brought attention to the safety aspects of getting jabbed with a new vaccine.

AstraZeneca faces a class-action lawsuit alleging serious injuries and deaths resulting from its vaccine, developed in collaboration with the University of Oxford.

THE COVISHIELD SAGA

Starting from 2021, Covishield was administered to millions across the world with studies confirming that the vaccine may cause rare side effects, one of which is TTS (Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome).

The condition causes blood clotting and low blood platelet count. However, this occurrence would be seen within 4 to 42 days of receiving the dose and the frequency is less than one in one lakh. TTS was a rare syndrome reported in people who received a Covid-19 adenovirus vector-based vaccine in 2021 during clinical trials.

The company had disclosed the information in its clinical trials. In 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO) affirmed this data, specifying that instances of Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS) have been documented following administration of the Covid-19 vaccines, Vaxzevria and Covishield.

ARE SIDE EFFECTS COMMON IN VACCINES?

While Covishield had a rare side effect, the same was the case with other Covid-19 vaccines as well, like Pfizer, in which studies published in Vaccine revealed that both Pfizer and Moderna could cause rare side effects like myocarditis (heart muscles get inflamed) and pericarditis (swelling of the heart tissue).

It just means that every vaccine can have a side effect but it is "very rare."

"If you were to look at the frequency of side effects, even common drugs like antibiotics can have rare side effects at frequencies of less than one in one lakh. So to get excited about that doesn't make sense. These things occur. To be honest, even drinking lauki ka juice (bottle gourd juice) can also cause side effects in rare cases," said Dr Anurag Agrawal, pulmonologist and medical researcher at Ashoka University, told IndiaToday.In.

BUT, ARE VACCINES SAFE TO TAKE?

The vaccines developed to combat Covid-19 across the world have been one of the most successful medical developments in modern medical science.

The vaccine development normally takes decades to go through the system, but that was not the case with Covid-19 vaccines, which saw a global collaboration across companies, institutions and even countries bypassing the red tape and bureaucracy to see the light of the day.

"Vaccines are absolutely safe," Dr Agrawal says emphatically. "They save lives."

To prevent any infectious disease, if there's an available vaccine for everyone, it is recommended to take it, repeated Dr Soma Dutta, Microbiologist, Apollo Multispeciality Hospitals. "One thing we should keep in mind, vaccines can't remove the disease occurrence, it can reduce the severity of the disease," Dr Dutta told IndiaToday.In.

Vaccines produce antibodies that help memory cells to fight against the virus.

Dr Agrawal suggested people not to worry about taking vaccines or who have taken the Covishield vaccine as side effects are a part of any food item.

"Someone might not be able to tolerate a glass of juice and their blood sugar might go up. Some people have had liver problems after drinking karela ka juice. No matter what you do, there can be rare side effects," said Dr Agrawal.

IS COVISHIELD SAFE?

Distinguishing between Covid-related symptoms and vaccine side effects is crucial. Experts maintained that the Covishield vaccine remains safe and people should not worry about their health as any side effect, if it was to occur, would have occurred in the initial few weeks of getting vaccinated.

"Presently, lingering effects may stem from long Covid rather than vaccine side effects. Although the vaccine's potential side effects were communicated earlier, no one talked about it at the time due to the urgent need for mass vaccination amidst time constraints," Dr M Wali, Senior Consultant, Department of Internal Medicine, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital added.

More than 80% of Indians opted for Covishield as it was the first available option. All vaccines carry potential side effects, and as a transparency measure, the manufacturers disclosed this information on the vial packaging.

Vaccines remain the most effective tool against Coronavirus and should not be ignored amid the growing noise.

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May 1, 2024

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AstraZeneca row: Vaccines come with caution, here's what makes them safe - India Today

Gujarat Congress president Shaktisinh Gohil on Wednesday accused the BJP-led Centre of ignoring the World Health Organizations emergency guidelines to maintain a database of people who have been administered Covid-19 vaccines. Gohils remarks came a day after global pharmaceutical manufacturer AstraZeneca admitted that its Covid-19 vaccine, developed by researchers from Oxford University, can cause Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS), a rare side effect of blood clotting and low platelet count after immunisation.

According to reports, AstraZeneca made the admission of this rare side effect in court as it faces a lawsuit alleging deaths caused by the vaccine. In 2023, the WHO stated that TTS emerged as a new adverse event following Covid-19 vaccination.

In India, the AstraZeneca vaccine was manufactured by the Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) and around 175 crore doses of the same vaccine were administered across various phases.

Citing severe health issues leading to cases of brain stroke, heart attack, kidney and liver failure among young individuals, the Congress lashed out at the government for putting peoples lives at stake.

Several questions are raised on how the government administered the Covishield vaccine. Despite the WHO alerting countries in 2023 regarding emergency guidelines to maintain a database of people being administered the Covid-19 vaccine, why did our country not act, whereas every country followed these guidelines? Gohil asked in a press conference.

Gohil also questioned the government for not asking the Central Research Institute, established in 1905, to manufacture the vaccine and instead entrusting the SII and Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech, which came up with Indias indigenous Covid-19 vaccine Covaxin.

When we have a pioneer institute in vaccine like the 118-year-old Central Research Institute, whose work has been lauded by other countries, why one company, Serum Institute of India, was given the contract? Rs 3,000 crore advance was given to the company by the government and Rs 1,500 crore to Bharat Biotech, the Rajya Sabha MP said.

Demanding compensation to all those who died of health complications after being vaccinated, said, We have repeatedly raised this issue. This is criminal negligence. We believe this matter will go to court under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 304. (culpable homicide not amounting to murder). We expect suo moto action by the high court and the Supreme Court. But you know, this government will put the entire machinery if one video of Amit Shah was tampered. We have complained against several fake videos of Rahul Gandhi to the cybercrime police, but nothing has been done.

The Indian Express Pvt Ltd

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After AstraZeneca admits Covid-19 vaccine side effect, Gujarat Congress lashes out at Centre for not maintaining vaccination database - The Indian...

BATON ROUGE - A group fighting against anti-vaccination legislation protested at the Capitol on Monday.

The nonprofit group Louisiana Families for Vaccines is hoping six of the 13 proposed bills will not become law. Group leaders said some of the bills would prohibit the requirement of vaccines in schools, ban COVID-19 vaccine requirements and require blood donors to disclose their vaccination status. Protest organizers said these bills are spreading mistruths.

"Ultimately, disinformation is deadly and it deserves no hospitality of the legislature floor," vaccine advocate Crystal Rommen said. "A lot of the legislation that we're seeing come through the House and the Senate are trying to limit access to vaccines. We see things that are based in misinformation."

One bill, HB 866, will allow for individuals to submit vaccine exemptions to allow them access into any public facility regardless of their vaccination status.

"Louisiana has one of the broadest vaccination exemption policies in the nations. We have non-medical exemptions including religious and philosophical. Of course, we also have medical exemptions for people who truly can't be vaccinated," Rommen said.

Pediatrician Mikki Bouquet says the legislature should be recommending vaccines to promote a healthier state.

"We need strong public policies that are evidence-based that state vaccines are safe, effective and healthy," Bouquet said.

HB 288, which would require autopsy reports for infants include immunization records, failed to pass.

The following bills are still making their way through the legislature:

- Allow unvaccinated students to remain in class with immunocompromised students during an outbreak (HB 908) - Require teenagers to have parental consent for immunizations (HB 711) - Prohibit businesses, schools and government entities from requiring COVID-19 vaccines or masks (HB 87) - Prohibit schools from requiring COVID-19 vaccines (HB 46) - Require blood donors to disclose vaccination status (HB 822) - Prohibit Louisiana from using CDC Public Health recommendations (HB 809)

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Nonprofit group Louisiana Families for Vaccines voice concerns over proposed bills - WBRZ

Researchers are recruiting some 1,100 people globally to participate in the trial's third phase. Ivan Radic via Flickr CC BY 2.0 DEED

A global trial has begun for the worlds first personalized vaccine for melanomathe deadliest form of skin cancer, which affects about 132,000 people per year. If successful, the therapy will prevent melanoma from returning in patients who have already been treated.

Participants in the Phase III trial, led by the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, begin by having a piece of their tumor surgically removed and its DNA sequenced. This genetic analysis informs the design of each persons individualized vaccine, an mRNA therapy developed by drug giants Merck and Moderna.

Each vaccine prompts the patients body to create antibodies that attack specific markers found only on their cancerous cells. Using the collected DNA, the therapy can zero in on up to 34 of these unique markers in the patients tumors, known as neoantigens. This customized anti-tumor immune response, doctors and scientists hope, will prevent melanoma from recurring.

This is one of the most exciting things weve seen in a really long time, Heather Shaw, the national coordinating investigator for the trial, tells the Guardians Andrew Gregory. This is very much an individualized therapy, and its far cleverer, in some senses, than a vaccine.

Some 1,100 people are being recruited globally to participate in the therapys expanded trials, meant to gather more data on its effectiveness. Previous results from the Phase II study, published in February in The Lancet, showed the vaccine was effective alongside Keytruda immunotherapy. Patients in that trial experienced a 49 percent reduction in the risk of recurrence or death after three years compared with the standard treatment, according to the United Kingdoms National Institute for Health and Care Research.

One of the first people to enroll in the new trial is 52-year-old Steve Young, a musician from Hertfordshire in England. Young had a melanoma growth removed from his scalp last summer, and this treatment is intended to prevent his cancer from returning.

[The trial] gave me a chance to feel like I was actually doing something to fight a potential unseen enemy, he tells BBC Radio. So rather than just sit there and wait and hope it was never going to come back, I actually had this chance to get involved in putting on some boxing gloves and squaring up to it.

So far, the side effects of the shot have proven to be no worse than those of a Covid or flu vaccine, such as a sore arm and some fatigue.

The field of personalized cancer vaccines is still evolving. Earlier this month, a Gritstone Bio trial for a similar therapy meant to treat colorectal cancer failed, STAT News Jason Mast reports.

Still, researchers remain hopeful that, if this new trial is successful, similarly personalized mRNA therapies can be applied in the future to tumors in kidneys, lungs and bladders.

I think there is a real hope that these will be the game changers in immunotherapy, Shaw tells the Guardian.

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Personalized Melanoma Vaccine Could Be a 'Game Changer' by Teaching the Body to Fight Cancer Cells - Smithsonian Magazine

By Shyam Bishen, Head, Centre for Health and Healthcare, World Economic Forum

Immunization is one of the most effective health interventions we can make.

Every year vaccination programmes save millions of lives. They have helped eradicate diseases like smallpox a deadly virus that has killed hundreds of millions of people. They were key to turning the tide of infections during the COVID-19 pandemic. And day-to-day, they are protecting vulnerable babies and children from diseases like measles, meningitis and tuberculosis.

The benefits extend beyond individual health as well. By preventing the spread of infectious diseases, vaccines reduce the burden on healthcare systems, lower healthcare costs, and enhance productivity by averting illness-related absenteeism. Furthermore, immunization contributes to socioeconomic development by preserving human capital and promoting economic stability, particularly in resource-limited settings where disease outbreaks can have devastating consequences.

Its been 50 years since the launch of the World Health Organizations (WHO) Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) a drive to provide universal access to life-saving vaccines for children worldwide and this years World Immunization Week will recognize the collective efforts behind it.

A lot has changed since the EPI was launched in 1974. Today, every country has a national immunization programme and many diseases have become far less common and deadly than they once were. But, in recent years, progress on immunization has slipped. Millions of children are missing out on life-saving vaccinations because of growing conflicts, economic downturns and vaccine hesitancy.

So now is an opportune time to review what we have achieved in the past 50 years, and what more we can do to ensure that people do not die from vaccine-preventable diseases.

Eradicating smallpox and polio, almost

The WHO describes the eradication of smallpox as a monumental triumph in the history of immunization and with good reason. The decline in smallpox deaths in the 20th century alone is extraordinary. Between 1900 and its eradication in 1980, the disease is estimated to have killed more than 300 million people.

A vaccine against the highly infectious variola virus that causes the disease was first discovered in 1796. In the following decades, several countries introduced mandatory vaccination policies. Although, at the turn of the century, the disease was still endemic in many countries, by the time the WHO's Intensified Smallpox Eradication Program was launched in 1966 it had been all but eliminated in Europe, North America and Australia. Coordinated programmes helped extinguish infections entirely by 1980.

We are now on the verge of eradicating polio, having first developed a vaccine against it in 1955. As a result of mass vaccination programmes in countries including India and Pakistan, cases of wild polio have decreased by 99% since 1988 when the World Health Assembly adopted a resolution to end the disease.

New vaccines for HPV, malaria and meningitis

The EPI was initially focused on six childhood diseases. This list has now expanded to include 13 universally recommended vaccines and an additional 17 depending on context.

The list of vaccine-preventable diseases continues to grow and malaria is a recent notable addition to it. After successful trials in Ghana, Malawi and Kenya in 2019, the first malaria vaccine was recommended for use by the WHO in 2021. There are now two approved malaria vaccines the WHO recommends using to prevent malaria in endemic areas.

Millions of children have been reached through vaccination programmes and deaths from the disease in young children have been cut by 13%. With malaria remaining one of the leading causes of child mortality, reaching more people with these life-saving vaccines is a top priority.

Another crucial vaccine breakthrough has been the development of a vaccine for the human papillomavirus (HPV). It is responsible for the majority of cervical cancers, which are the fourth most common cancers in women. The vaccines also protect against other cancers including vaginal and anal.

Around 125 countries have introduced HPV vaccines since they were first licensed in 2006, and there are efforts to encourage other countries to introduce them into their routine immunization programmes.

This year, Nigeria became the first country in the world to roll out a new vaccine for meningitis, which protects people against five strains of the meningococcus bacteria. It is one of 26 countries in Africa where meningitis is hyper-endemic, and last year, the number of meningitis cases in Africa jumped by half.

Ending outbreaks earlier

Away from childhood immunization programmes, mass and targeted immunization interventions have also been crucial to curbing infections and deaths from several other diseases.

Ebola outbreaks, for example, can now be more quickly and effectively controlled by vaccinating those most at risk through ring vaccination strategies. The disease is relatively rare and unpredictable but also has a high death toll associated with it. A global stockpile of ebola vaccines has been established to help improve the response in the face of an outbreak.

The COVID-19 pandemic is another example of where rapid development of vaccines allowed the outbreak to be downgraded from one of global concern by limiting the spread and severity of the illness.

What we need to do now

Through human ingenuity we can now prevent and possibly end altogether some of the worlds most deadly diseases. However, a challenge remains in ensuring these life-saving interventions are universally accessible.

Initiatives like the World Economic Forums Regionalized Vaccine Manufacturing Collaborative are vital to expanding vaccine production across the globe and preventing vaccine disparity across regions. By combining forces governments, pharmaceutical companies and investors can help prevent future pandemics and accelerate vaccine innovation.

These collaborations are also crucial to supporting the development and targeted funding needed to develop vaccines for the diseases we dont yet have covered.

And, despite the overwhelming evidence supporting the safety and efficacy of vaccines, misinformation and misconceptions persist, leading to vaccine hesitancy and reluctance. Addressing these misconceptions requires comprehensive public health campaigns that prioritize education, transparency, and trust-building. Healthcare providers, policymakers, and community leaders play crucial roles in dispelling myths, providing accurate information, and fostering vaccine confidence among the population.

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Immunization: How It Started, How It's Going What We've Achieved Through 50 Years Of Vaccination Programs - Forbes

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A team of Montana researchers is playing a key role in the development of a more effective vaccine against tuberculosis, an infectious disease that has killed more people than any other.

The BCG (Bacille Calmette-Gurin) vaccine, created in 1921, remains the sole TB vaccine. While it is 40% to 80% effective in young children, its efficacy is very low in adolescents and adults, leading to a worldwide push to create a more powerful vaccine.

One effort is underway at the University of Montana Center for Translational Medicine. The center specializes in improving and creating vaccines by adding what are called novel adjuvants. An adjuvant is a substance included in the vaccine, such as fat molecules or aluminum salts, that enhances the immune response, and novel adjuvants are those that have not yet been used in humans. Scientists are finding that adjuvants make for stronger, more precise, and more durable immunity than antigens, which create antibodies, would alone.

Eliciting specific responses from the immune system and deepening and broadening the response with adjuvants is known as precision vaccination. "It's not one-size-fits-all," said Ofer Levy, a professor of pediatrics at Harvard University and the head of the Precision Vaccines Program at Boston Children's Hospital. "A vaccine might work differently in a newborn versus an older adult and a middle-aged person."

The ultimate precision vaccine, said Levy, would be lifelong protection from a disease with one jab. "A single-shot protection against influenza or a single-shot protection against COVID, that would be the holy grail," Levy said.

Jay Evans, the director of the University of Montana center and the chief scientific and strategy officer and a co-founder of Inimmune, a privately held biotechnology company in Missoula, said his team has been working on a TB vaccine for 15 years. The private-public partnership is developing vaccines and trying to improve existing vaccines, and he said it's still five years off before the TB vaccine might be distributed widely.

It has not gone unnoticed at the center that this state-of-the-art vaccine research and production is located in a state that passed one of the nation's most extreme anti-vaccination laws during the pandemic in 2021. The law prohibits businesses and governments from discriminating against people who aren't vaccinated against COVID-19 or other diseases, effectively banning both public and private employers from requiring workers to get vaccinated against COVID or any other disease. A federal judge later ruled that the law cannot be enforced in health care settings, such as hospitals and doctors' offices.

In mid-March, the Bill & Melinda Gates Medical Research Institute announced it had begun the third and final phase of clinical trials for the new vaccine in seven countries. The trials should take about five years to complete. Research and production are being done in several places, including at a manufacturing facility in Hamilton owned by GSK..

Known as the forgotten pandemic, TB kills up to 1.6 million people a year, mostly in impoverished areas in Asia and Africa, despite its being both preventable and treatable. The U.S. has seen an increase in tuberculosis over the past decade, especially with the influx of migrants, and the number of cases rose by 16% from 2022 to 2023. Tuberculosis is the leading cause of death among people living with HIV, whose risk of contracting a TB infection is 20 times as great as people without HIV.

"TB is a complex pathogen that has been with human beings for ages," said Alemnew Dagnew, who heads the program for the new vaccine for the Gates Medical Research Institute. "Because it has been with human beings for many years, it has evolved and has a mechanism to escape the immune system. And the immunology of TB is not fully understood."

The University of Montana Center for Translational Medicine and Inimmune together have 80 employees who specialize in researching a range of adjuvants to understand the specifics of immune responses to different substances. "You have to tailor it like tools in a toolbox towards the pathogen you are vaccinating against," Evans said. "We have a whole library of adjuvant molecules and formulations."

Vaccines are made more precise largely by using adjuvants. There are three basic types of natural adjuvants: aluminum salts; squalene, which is made from shark liver; and some kinds of saponins, which are fat molecules. It's not fully understood how they stimulate the immune system. The center in Missoula has also created and patented a synthetic adjuvant, UM-1098, that drives a specific type of immune response and will be added to new vaccines.

One of the most promising molecules being used to juice up the immune system response to vaccines is a saponin molecule from the bark of the quillay tree, gathered in Chile from trees at least 10 years old. Such molecules were used by Novavax in its COVID vaccine and by GSK in its widely used shingles vaccine, Shingrix. These molecules are also a key component in the new tuberculosis vaccine, known as the M72 vaccine.

But there is room for improvement.

"The vaccine shows 50% efficacy, which doesn't sound like much, but basically there is no effective vaccine currently, so 50% is better than what's out there," Evans said. "We're looking to take what we learned from that vaccine development with additional adjuvants to try and make it even better and move 50% to 80% or more."

By contrast, measles vaccines are 95% effective.

According to Medscape, around 15 vaccine candidates are being developed to replace the BCG vaccine, and three of them are in Phase III clinical trials.

One approach Evans' center is researching to improve the new vaccine's efficacy is taking a piece of the bacterium that causes TB, synthesizing it, and combining it with the adjuvant QS-21, made from the quillay tree. "It stimulates the immune system in a way that is specific to TB and it drives an immune response that is even closer to what we get from natural infections," Evans said.

The University of Montana center is researching the treatment of several problems not commonly thought of as treatable with vaccines. They are entering the first phase of clinical trials for a vaccine for allergies, for instance, and first-phase trials for a cancer vaccine. And later this year, clinical trials will begin for vaccines to block the effects of opioids like heroin and fentanyl.

The University of Montana received the largest grant in its history for anti-opioid vaccine research. It works by creating an antibody that binds with the drug in the bloodstream, which keeps it from entering the brain and creating the high.

For now, though, the eyes of health care experts around the world are on the trials for the new TB vaccines, which, if they are successful, could help save countless lives in the world's poorest places.

2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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The path to a better tuberculosis vaccine runs through Montana - Medical Xpress

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With the creation of safe and efficacious vaccines to target human papillomavirus in the first decade of this century, WHO has an ambitious target to lower cervical cancer incidence (mostly caused by HPV) and mortality by 30% by 2030, meaning each country has a target of vaccinating 90% of girls by age 15, 70% of women receiving a high precision screening test at least at age 35 and 45 years of age, and 90% of all women requiring treatment at any age to receive it.

The targets are aspirational and as yet, it appears no country has been verified as reaching them. The aim is for call countries to reach a target of cervical cancer incidence of less than four cases per 100,000 women per year, eliminating it as a public health threat.

However, a presentation by Professor Suzanne Garland (University of Melbourne, Australia) at this year's ESCMID Global Congress (formerly ECCMID, 2730 April, Barcelona) reveals that, even though evidence is clear and continues to build that HPV vaccination is reducing cervical cancer incidence and mortality and HPV-related disease (such as genital warts, cervical, vaginal and vulval precancers, and rates of HPV infection leading to other cancers such as head and neck cancers, and anal and penile cancers caused by types of HPV covered by the vaccines) there are high variations in coverage globally including between high-income countries that can easily afford the vaccines; while many low- and middle-income countries are yet to include this vital tool in their national vaccination programs.

Professor Garland emphasizes that while high coverage of HPV vaccination especially in girls (and also boys) before they become infected is the number one tool we have to fight cervical cancers and HPV related disease, we cannot take our eyes off other prevention measures, such as condom use during sexual intercourse, age appropriate sex education, male circumcision and tobacco control strategies. Also screening for cervical disease and treatment thereof to prevent cancer occurring.

She reviewed WHO Dashboard data showing that, of 194 reporting countries, 137 (71%) have HPV in their national vaccination programs, while a further four (2%) have partially introduced them and 57 (27%) have not. Of the 141 with total /partial HPV national programs reporting to the end of 2023, 59 (42%) are for both sexes, while 82 (58%) are for girls only.

Average full vaccine coverage is 44% globally, highest in WHO's European region at 60% and lowest in the Americas Region at 31% (in Africa countries with a program average coverage is 38%). Globally including all 194 countries, 21% of girls have received at least one dose of HPV vaccine by age 15, which has steadily increased from 4% in 2010 with a short drop in the COVID years.

Among high-income countries there is wide variation according to WHO's database. Prof Garland refers to Australia's own national figures which have remained strong and world leadingsingle dose HPV vaccination coverage among males at 15 years of age in Australia in 2021 and 2022 was 84.4% and 83.1%, respectively.

Coverage in females at 15 years of age is even higher in 2021 and 2022 was 86.2% and 85.3%, respectively. This has seen a 92% reduction in the prevalence of HPV types included in the vaccine, and Australia aims to be the first country to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health threat.

The latest prevalence figure for Australia dates to 2019, as they await further data to update to 2023. Since the Australia's 2019 cervical cancer incidence is 6.4 new cases per 100,000 women in 2019, Prof Garland hopes the next update whenever it comes will show Australia has surpassed the target and dropped below four.

The WHO database also shows Canada, Ireland, Sweden, Spain and Portugal all with full vaccination coverage above 70%, the U.S. and Germany trailing behind on 5070%, and Italy and France among the lowest at 3050%. Japan is in the worst situation of any high-income country, with Professor Garland saying this was due negative media coverage and the government being slow to endorse vaccination safety.

Latest figures form the UK Health Security Agency show that HPV vaccine coverage of dose one for year 8 females in 2022 to 2023 (born 1 September 2009 to 31 August 2010) was 71.3% in England, and the equivalent figure for boys is 65.2%.

Denmark suffered a huge dip in coverage in 2016 with negative mass media crippling coverage which then recovered with various campaigns, while Sweden and Canada have consistently improved vaccine coverage. France has long experienced various issues persuading its population to use vaccines; yet while HPV vaccine coverage is low it is steadily improving.

Prof Garland discusses evidence from various sources including a 2019 analysis in The Lancet of 65 studies from 19 high-income countries showing how HPV infections, anogenital warts and precancerous cervical lesions all fell substantially following introduction of HPV vaccine. She also discusses an NEJM article showing how in unvaccinated women cervical cancer rates remain 94 per 100,000 women, dropping to 17 per 100,000 in women vaccinated aged 1729 years and four per 100,000 in women vaccinated when aged under 17 years.

Four per 100,000 is the target WHO wants all countries to reach. This evidence shows that it is best to vaccinate before a person's first sexual intercourse because vaccines prevent infection and thus subsequent disease but are not therapeutic, meaning they won't treat an already established infection.

She also presents evidence from Australia on how the protective effects of vaccination extended to men even before boys were included in the vaccination programthat is, vaccinating girls also helped protect men from HPV disease (herd immunity), as reduces circulating virus in the community and this was further increased when boys were included. However young men who had sex with men only began to benefit once boys themselves were vaccinated.

She also discusses global efforts to boost HPV coverage using a single dose, adopted by 51 countries by March 2024, based on SAGE recommendations from observational and also new RCT data published in NEJM showing one dose effective in those aged 1520 years, although two doses are still recommended six months apart for those 20 years and over.

The challenges that remain for countries to improve coverage are competing vaccines, their price and delivery, political will and the number of doses required, as well as the interruptions from global events such as wars and the COVID-19 pandemic. But even LMIC can overcome these challenges, with Malaysia being one such country with very high coverage.

But Prof Garland concludes, "Vaccination is a critical component of the global strategy to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem. HPV vaccines are highly effective at preventing HPV infections, and HPV related diseases, including associated cancers and genital warts, in females and males.

"There is strong and growing evidence on effectiveness against cervical cancer, with rates falling steadily as vaccination takes effect, and Australia has demonstrated what is possible with rapid and widespread HPV vaccine coverage. Scaling up vaccine access and coverage globally is critical to reduce inequities between and within countries."

Provided by European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases

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Cervical cancer vaccine roll-out shows efficacy in reducing cervical cancer and other HPV-related disease - Medical Xpress

By John Ely and Rebecca Whittaker and Jane Fryer and Mark Duell 15:52 29 Apr 2024, updated 16:24 29 Apr 2024

The AstraZeneca vaccine was said to have saved more than six million lives around the world in the first year of the rollout during the Covid-19 pandemic.

But at least 81 Britons died from blood clot complications that appeared to be linked to the jab, according to figures collated by UK drug watchdog the MHRA.

Now, the Cambridge-based pharmaceutical company has admitted in court for the first time that its Covid vaccine can cause the deadly blood clotting side effect.

The extremely rare reaction is at the heart of a huge class action by dozens of families who allege they or loved ones were injured or killed by the jab.

Product details for the AstraZeneca jab were updated publicly in April 2021, with MHRA approval, to include the possibility that it was capable in very rare cases of being a trigger for thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome (TTS).

As families and survivors continue to fight for compensation, MailOnline has compiled the stories of some of those whose deaths were linked to the vaccine.

Lisa Shaw, 44

Lisa Shaw, an award-winning radio presenter on BBC Radio Newcastle, died in May 2021.

Until she was admitted to hospital she had been fit, healthy and fizzing with the sort of energy her job on the morning show required.

Ms Shaw had been vaccinated on April 29, but started developing headaches a week later.

On May 13, she was admitted to hospital where her husbandGareth Eve, now 43, was handed a print-out explaining what VITT was.

At first doctors were confident they could treat it, but on May 16, Ms Shaw started to have speech problems.

Her husband recalled: 'We were having a conversation about [their son] Zach's swimming lessons and she couldn't get out the word 'goggles'.'

It was discovered that she had suffered a bleed on the brain, and was rushed to surgery where part of her skull was removed to ease the pressure.

She never recovered and spent the last five days of her life on a ventilator, as her family gathered in shock. She died on May 21, leaving behind her six-year-old son Zach.

Tom Dudley, 31

Tom Dudley, 31, who had no underlying health conditions, got his first dose of the AstraZeneca jab near his home in Sheffield on April 27, 2021.

The 30-plus age group was not called forward for the Covid vaccine until late May that year.

It is not clear if the father-of-two was called forward for a jab early as some people who lived with vulnerable Brits were or, as happened at various points during the initial vaccine rollout, he was able to get a jab early in his area.

Mr Dudley, who worked as a carpet salesman, soon began to suffer headaches a common side effect of the vaccine that normally faded within days.

Two weeks after getting the jab, he was found unresponsive in the early hours at the home he shared with his partner Simone and their two daughters.

The Sheffield United fan was rushed to Northern General Hospital, but doctors said the bleed on his brain was 'incurable' and he died three days later.

It is not clear if this bleed was specifically caused by a condition called vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (VITT), which causes dangerous blood clots to form in various parts of the body, including the brain.

However, a medic who treated the father-of-two in hospital told an inquest into his death that it was 'fair to say' he would still be alive today if he was given a different vaccine.

Mr Dudley's GP said that given his age, lack of underlying conditions and the medical advice at the time, it was appropriate to give him AstraZeneca's jab.Coroner Tanyka Rawden recorded his cause of death as a bleed on the brain, caused by the vaccine.

Jack Hurn, 26

Jack Hurn, from Redditch in Worcestershire, diedfrom 'catastrophic' blood clots after receiving AstraZeneca's Covid vaccine.

The26-year-old died in June 2021, less than two weeks after receiving the jab at a Dudley vaccine centre.

A week-long inquest atBirmingham Coroner's Court heard that a GP informed Mr Hurn the risk of blood clots on the brain for his age group was one in 250,000, whenNHSguidance had actually estimated it to be one in 50,000.

The inquest heard the automotive design graduate chose to go ahead with the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine on May 29, 2021, after being told there was no Pfizer jab in stock.

Mr Hurn, originally from Devon, began suffering with headaches within days and died on June 11at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital, despite emergency surgery.

Doctors allegedly described him as having 'catastrophic' blood clots on the brain.

Emma Brown, Coroner for Birmingham and Solihull, ruled in a reportthat his death was 'due to a rare but recognised complication' of the vaccination.

Alpa Tailor, 35

Mother-of-two Alpa Tailor, 35, diedfrom blood clots on her brain caused by the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Alpa fell ill just over a week after getting her first dose of the coronavirus jab in March 2021.

The 30-plus age group was not called forward for Covid vaccine until late May that year.

It is not clear if Ms Tailor was called forward for a jab early or if she was able to get a jab early in the area.

St Pancras Coroner's Court heard that Ms Tailor was complaining of a headache before she suffered stroke-like symptoms, including slurred speech and a facial droop.

She was rushed to hospital on April 8 and quickly diagnosed with the then-new complication VITT.

Alpa had surgery to relieve pressure on her brain and, whilst doctors initially thought she had responded well to treatment, on April 22, medics discovered she was suffering from massive brain haemorrhaging.

The devoted mother, who had the jab to 'protect her family', died on April 24 and a post-mortem examination found she had suffered multiple brain clots.

Kelly Dunley, 38

Kelly Dunley, 38, died after developing a deep vein thrombosis a type of blood clot after receiving the AstraZenecaCovid jab,a coroner ruled.

Ms Dunley,from Stoke-on-Trent,had her first jab on March 2, 2021.

The 30-plus age group was not called forward for Covid vaccine until late May that year.

It is not clear if Ms Dunley was called forward for a jab early or if she was able to get a jab early in the area.

She was rushed to Royal Stoke University Hospital on May 17 that year after collapsing.

Despite the efforts of medics, she died at the hospital on the same day. A post-mortem found a blood clot in her leg had travelled to her lung.

The examination also found that she had a laceration to her liver, which was likely caused by the attempted resuscitation, and an abnormal spleen.

A coroner ruled in June 2022 that her death was a pulmonary embolism caused by deep vein thrombosis and was linked to 'complications of the vaccine'.

Nicola Weideling, 45

Nicola Weidelingdied of a stroke attributed to the AstraZeneca jab.

The 45-year-old Oxford UniversityPress executivesuffered catastrophic bleeds on her brain after being hospitalised with blood clots caused by the vaccine.

She received the jab 24 days prior on April 21.

Her husband, Kurt,paid tribute to her during an inquest into her deathsaying she was 'a supporter and believer in getting vaccinated.She went on the first or second day she was eligible for her age group to get vaccinated'.

Ms Weideling had complained to her GP following her jab about neck pain but the link to jab was not made untilshe was taken to hospital with several other symptoms of blood clots.

A post-mortem examination showed Ms Weidelingdied on May 15, 2021 after suffering a stroke caused by VITT.

Oli Akram Hoque, 26

Oli Akram Hoque, 26, from Ilford, East London, died from a rare blood clot weeks after taking the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Thetrainee solicitorreceived his first dose on March 19, 2021, before suffering increasingly 'excruciating' headaches and vomiting blood.

People in their late 20s were not called forward for the initial jab rollout until June.

It is unclear if Mr Hoque was called in for a jab early or if he was able to get a vaccine sooner than expected in his area.

He died at Queen's Hospital in Romford on April 15, 2021 one month before his 27th birthday.

His father told an inquest that Mr Hoque had gone to the urgent treatment centre located at the Royal London Hospital on April 5.

However, he claimed his son was was 'discharged without proper diagnosis or investigation' with an injection to stop him being sick.

His father also said Mr Hoque had 'requested a scan to be carried out but his request was declined'.

He later had a seizure and was taken back to Queen's Hospital where a CT scan identified a blood clot. He was then put on blood thinners but later died in hospital.

A coroner concluded in October 2022 that hedied as a result of the 'very rare complication' caused by the Covid-19 vaccine.

Stephen Wright, 32

Dr Stephen Wright, 32, who worked as aclinical psychologist in South East London, suffered a blood clot in the brain after having his first dose of the jab in January 2021.

He was among the earliest groups of people to be given the vaccine during the pandemic.

Dr Wright suffered from a combination of a brainstem infarction, bleed on the brain and 'vaccine-induced thrombosis'.

He was taken to Princess Royal University Hospital in Orpington and moved to King's College Hospital as his condition rapidly worsened. But the nature of the bleed meant Dr Wright was unfit for surgery. He died on the evening of January 26.

Regarding the official documents detailing Dr Wright's death, a coroner said: 'It is very important to record as fact that it is the AstraZeneca vaccine but that is different from blaming AstraZeneca.

'He attended an A&E department just after midnight where was found to have high blood pressure and a sagittal sinus thrombosis.

'He was transferred to King's College Hospital at 6.39am but, due to the extent of the bleed and very low platelets, was unfit for surgery.'

Medical experts told the court nothing could be done to save him as his condition quickly worsened.

Jack Last, 27

Jack Last, a 27-year-old man from Stowmarket, Suffolk, was vaccinated with the AstraZeneca jab on March 30, 2021.

But a week later, he was admitted to hospital after experiencing headaches and sickness.

A subsequent scan revealed the engineer had a cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, a type of blood clot in the brain, and he died on April 10.

People in their late 20s were not called forward for the initial jab rollout until June.

It is unclear why Mr Last was called in early to get a jab.

A coroner investigating his passing ruled that he died from a reaction to the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Michelle Barlow, 51

Michelle Barlow, a 'fit and healthy' mother-of-two from Wigan, died from blood clots caused by the AstraZeneca vaccine in March 2021.

The 51-year-oldbegan suffering headaches and nausea about a week after receiving her first dose of the jab.

She was eventually admitted to hospital but died later that month.

Mrs Barlow, who worked as a civil servant for the Department of Work and Pensions for 34 years, was found to have suffered multiple organ failure caused by VITT.

Her family were unable to see her in hospital for most of the time she was there due to Covid restrictions.

A coroner said in November 2021 that she died from 'unrecognised' complications after having the Covid vaccine - and was wrongly diagnosed with gastroenteritis.

Zion, 48

A rock singer, who called himself Zion XXX, suffered a 'catastrophic brain injury' from a rare complication triggered by the AstraZenecajab.

The 48-year-old had an agonising headache on May 13, 2021, eight days after getting his first dose.

He later died at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle-upon-Tyne on May 19.

An inquest held at Newcastle Coroner's Court in August 2022 heard how his condition severely deteriorated in the days after his headaches began.

A paramedic who was first called to Zion's home in Alston, Cumbria, on May 15, 2021,gave evidence at the inquest and said Zion was 'alert and sat up' when she arrived.

She told the hearing that she advised Zion to go to hospital for further checks, but he said he did not want to go for fear of catching Covid.

Link:

The AstraZeneca vaccine 'victims': From families losing loved ones to those left with life-changing injuries, - Daily Mail

(Precision Vaccinations News)

With the creation of efficacious cancer prevention vaccines to target human papillomavirus (HPV) in the first decade of this century, the World Health Organization (WHO) setan ambitious target to lower cervical cancer incidenceand mortality by 30% by 2030.

While the WHO targets are aspirational, no country has yet verified that it has reached them.

A presentation by Professor Suzanne Garland at this year's ESCMID Global Congressrevealed thateven though the evidence is clear and continues to build that HPV vaccination is reducing cervical cancer incidence and mortality and HPV-related disease,there are high variations in coverage globally.

Prof Garland reviewed the WHO Dashboard data, which shows that of 194 reporting countries, 137 (71%) have HPV in their national vaccination programs.

The WHO database showsthat the average full vaccine coverage is 44% globally.

Specifically, itshows that Canada, Ireland, Sweden, Spain, and Portugal have full vaccination coverage above 70%, while the USA and Germany trail behind at 50-70%.

Of theHPV national programs reporting to the end of 2023, 42%are for both sexes, while 58% are for girls only.

Globally, 21% of girls have received at least one dose of HPV vaccine by age 15, which has steadily increased from 4% in 2010.

Prof Garland concluded in a press release on April 27, 2024,"Vaccination is a critical component of the global strategy to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem."

"There is strong and growing evidence on effectiveness against cervical cancer, with rates falling steadily as vaccination takes effect."

"Scaling up vaccine access and coverage globally is critical to reduce inequities between and within countries."

In the United States, several states are reaching a broad number of boys and girls, while others are lagging.

For example,Texas's HPV vaccination rate for children ages 1317 is below the national average, ranking 48th out of 50 states and the District of Columbia in 2021.

In 2021, 51.5% of Texas teens completed the HPV vaccine series.

As of April 29, 2024, HPV vaccinesare available at clinics and pharmacies in the U.S.

More here:

Who Needs HPV Vaccination Rate Boosting Precision Vaccinations News - Precision Vaccinations