Landmark new research reveals that children vaccinated at age 12–13 against HPV (human papillomavirus) have close to zero risk of dying from cervical cancer before the age of 30
Deaths have fallen sharply since school-age girls began being offered the vaccine in 2008, with around 200 lives being saved in England
HPV is passed from one person to another through close skin-to-skin contact
How can I get the vaccine?Do I need to be tested for HPV?What about cervical screening? BBC health journalists are answering key questions in this live page
One doctor tells us she speaks to parents who are hesitant to get their children vaccinated, but she emphasises the protection it offers
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Michelle Roberts
Health editor
A positive HPV test does not mean you have cancer. It means a high-risk strain of HPV has been detected.
The sample is then checked under a microscope for cell changes.
If there are none, you will be invited for a further HPV test sooner than usual to check that the HPV has gone (the body often clears the infection itself).
If cell changes are found, this does not mean you have cancer. You will be invited to have more checks and may need some treatment.
It is very rare for an abnormal result to show that a cancer has already developed.
Tara Mewawalla
Live reporter
Image source, Alexandra LawrenceAlexandra Lawrence is chair of the Gynaecological Expert Reference Group North East London Cancer Alliance (NELCA)
As a consultant gynaecological oncologist at the Royal London Hospital, Alexandra Lawrence speaks to parents who are sometimes hesitant to get their children vaccinated.
She says this is because they believe the HPV vaccine will promote sexual activity in young women, but not getting children vaccinated “makes them less protected” and “might undermine their future health".
Lawrence says the HPV vaccine also protects men and boys from certain cancers, protects any future partners, and is particularly useful for men who have sex with men.
“The younger you have the vaccination the more likely you are to have enduring immunity," Lawrence explains. "Ideally you’d have it before you have sex.”
Lawrence adds that for some people, having HPV has a “big taboo”.
“It’s a sexually acquired infection but pretty much everybody who ever has sex gets exposed to HPV. It’s just luck of the draw if you get high-risk HPV or low-risk”. However, she says, “people are becoming much more accepting of it”.
Michelle Roberts
Health editor
Cervical screening is still important even if you've been vaccinated against human papillomavirus (HPV).
The HPV vaccine doesn’t protect against all types of HPV that cause cervical cancer. Cervical screening is another effective way to prevent cervical cancer.
It aims to detect certain types of HPV infection that can cause changes to the cells of your cervix.
If any abnormal cells are found, these can be monitored or treated before they have a chance to become cervical cancer.
Image source, OtherAlexandra and her three-year-old daughter Ivy, who was born after she had cervical cancer
Alexandra Legg left school just before the HPV vaccine was introduced in England.
In 2021, just as she was planning her wedding, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer aged 30.
"I remember hearing the words and I just couldn't really breathe very well," she says. "I was so upset - everything went through my head, it was so hard."
Her treatment involved the removal of lymph nodes in her abdomen, although surgeons were able to preserve a small part of her cervix, giving her a chance of becoming pregnant.
Just a year later, her daughter Ivy was born. "Those nine months were so scary because I was at such risk of losing her at any point," she says.
Alexandra says her life could have been far less traumatic if she had been offered the HPV vaccine and urged those eligible to get it.
"I'm a real advocate for this vaccine and when Ivy is old enough, she'll be first in the queue," she adds.
The human papillomavirus (HPV) causes almost all of the main types of cervical cancer, according to Cancer Research UK.
There are many different types of HPV - 14 of which are considered high risk for cervical cancer. Two types of the virus (HPV 16 and HPV 18) cause about 70 out of 100 (70%) of all cervical cancer cases.
For most people, HPV causes no harm and goes away on its own. However, if you have a persistent infection and a high risk type of HPV, you are more at risk of developing cervical cancer.
People living with HIV or AIDS, and tobacco smokers have a higher risk of getting cervical cancer, while women who have a sexually transmitted infection alongside HPV may also be at greater risk.
Michelle Roberts
Health editor
Image source, Getty ImagesHPV is passed from one person to another through close skin-to-skin contact.
You are at risk of getting HPV with any kind of sexual contact, including oral sex, touching of the genital area, vaginal sex, anal sex, and sharing sex toys.
It is possible to get HPV from just one occasion of sexual contact. If you have not had any kind of sexual contact, your risk of getting HPV is low.
You may decide not to have screening if you have not been sexually active, but you can still go if you want to. It might help to talk it through with your GP.
The landmark new research looks at mortality rates of cervical cancer and vaccination data for women aged 20 to 34 to calculate the impact of vaccination on cervical cancer survival.
Here's a breakdown of the key findings:
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Image source, Getty ImagesThe HPV vaccine - which helps protect people from human papillomavirus - is given as an injection into the arm.
It's recommended for children aged 12 to 13, who are usually offered the vaccine in year 8 of secondary school.
For those aged 24 and under who missed taking the vaccine as a child, you can get it by contacting your GP or school nurse.
The NHS also recommends it to those at higher risk to HPV, including: sex workers, people with HIV, and men who have engaged in sexual intercourse with men.
The number of doses taken depends on two factors: your age, and how well your immune system works. People under 25 usually take a single dose, with those who have a weakened immune system taking up to three doses across a year.
You cannot have the vaccine if you've had a serious allergic reaction to a previous dose of the vaccine, or an ingredient in the vaccine.
Image source, Getty ImagesWelcome to our live page covering HPV (human papillomavirus) and cervical cancer in England.
Landmark new research has revealed that children who are vaccinated against HPV at age 12-13 have close to zero risk of dying from cervical cancer before the age of 30.
The first study of its kind, external showed deaths from cervical cancer have fallen sharply since school-age girls began being offered the HPV vaccine in 2008.
And crucially, between 2020 and 2024, no cervical cancer deaths were recorded in women aged 20 to 24 in England - the first time that had happened over a five-year period.
Around 200 lives have been saved in England so far thanks to the jab, according to the study spearheaded by Queen Mary University of London and funded by Cancer Research UK.
Without vaccination, around 23 deaths would have been expected in the five-year window from 2020 to 2024.
Our experts will be answering the key questions on cervical cancer and HPV, as well as what these findings mean throughout the day. Stay with us.
