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Mr. Editor,
In 2010, as Minister of Health, I announced the HPV Vaccine Initiative. In 2011, we launched the HPV Vaccine Initiative for girls ages 9 to 11 years old. The implementation of the Initiative was launched with a simple ceremony at the Grove Health Center (East Bank Demerara). I spoke at launch. Among those present was the Regional Health Officer, who at the time was Dr. Karen Cummings, now Minister at the Ministry of Public Health. Curiously, this HPV initiative has been launched at least three more times since May 2015. This week, Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence announced that the HPV vaccination initiative would be expanded to boys. This is a necessary measure and I congratulate the Ministry of Public Health. In congratulating them, I insist that this announcement is not just another topic of conversation, as the launch of the Boys Inclusion Initiative is now at least three years behind schedule.
At the time, the PPP government had invested in the HPV vaccine initiative because a global study had shown that HPV was and remains a common virus that infects men and women. Studies show that HPV is so common that 8 out of 10 people will be infected with HPV in their lifetime. HPV infections can cause cervical cancer in women, cancers of the throat, called oropharyngeal cancers, cancers of the anus, in men and women, and the penis in men. The cancers of the back of the throat have now overtaken cervical cancer as the most common type of cancer caused by HPV. Unlike cervical cancer in women, there is no screening test recommended for other types of cancers caused by HPV. It is therefore possible that they will not be detected until they cause health problems. The HPV Vaccine Initiative was therefore more than an initiative to stop cervical cancer. Although best known as an essential strategy in the fight against cervical cancer, HPV vaccines are now considered a powerful tool in the fight against several cancers. That is why we must spare no effort to ensure universal access to HPV vaccines for our children and other vulnerable groups.
The announcement by the Minister of Public Health that the HPV vaccination program will be extended to boys corrects a serious mistake, as this gradual change is already more than three years behind the schedule set in 2010, when Was Minister of Health. At the time, we had promised that the HPV vaccine would be integrated into the immunization program by 2011, starting with the vaccination of girls aged 9 to 11 years. Parents of girls between the ages of 12 and 15 were also encouraged to bring their daughter for vaccination. At the time, we had set 2015 as the start date for extending anti-HPV vaccination to boys aged 9 to 11 years. The announcement by the minister that the program will now include boys is a case of "better late than never".
When we presented the details of the launch of the HPV vaccination initiative at the launch of the initiative at the Grove Health Center, starting with girls aged 9 to 11 in 2011 and including the vaccination of boys by 2015, we have also announced by 2020, start providing HPV vaccines to women aged 20 to 40 who do not have it, which would constitute the vast majority of Guyanese women in this age group. 'age. It is interesting to note that the United States launched the HPV vaccine program in adult women in 2018. When we launched the HPV Vaccine Initiative in 2011 with the details of its deployment, this initiative was one of the world's most ambitious HPV initiatives.
Vaccination of boys with the HPV vaccine is a decisive step forward, and even though Guyana missed the initial 2015 schedule, Guyana remains at the forefront of developing countries in HPV vaccines. This was an important strategic initiative taken by the Ministry of Health in its fight against cervical cancer, but since then it has been a crucial initiative in the global fight against cancer. Once we have universal access to HPV vaccines in Guyana, we have a good chance of reducing the incidence of cervical cancer by more than 70% by 2030 and being a success story. prevention in the fight against other cancers.
In making this announcement, the minister did not inform the citizens of our country of the HPV vaccination status of girls aged 9 to 11 years. If the program has been effective, the vast majority of girls aged 11 to 18 should be immunized against HPV. The Ministry of Public Health must inform the country of the current situation of girls aged 11 to 18 with regard to HPV. Does the department have data? We need to know. Guyana simply can not launch this program every year without informing citizens of the progress made in vaccinating our children, boys and girls, with the HPV vaccine. It's like turning our wheels without going anywhere.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Leslie Ramsammy
Former Minister of Health
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