The 9vHPV (9-valent HPV) vaccine is on the Australian Immunisation Schedule and is recommended for:
- adolescents aged 9–18 years
- people with significant immunocompromising conditions (except for asplenia or hyposplenia)
- men who have sex with men
The disease
HPV stands for human papillomavirus. Up to 90% of the general population (men and women) will be infected with at least 1 genital type of HPV at some time in their lives. The infection often causes no symptoms and goes away by itself, but can sometimes cause persist in the body and lead to serious illness. HPV is responsible for:
- almost all cases of genital warts and cervical cancer
- 90% of anal cancers
- 65% of vaginal cancers
- 50% of vulva cancers
- 35% of penile cancers
- 60% of oropharyngeal cancers (cancers of the back of the throat, including the base of the tongue and tonsils).
The vaccine
The recommended schedule for adolescents aged 9–14 years is 2 doses, with a 6–12-month interval between doses.
The recommended schedule for people aged ≥15 years is 3 doses, with an interval of 2 months between dose 1 and dose 2, and 6 months between dose 2 and dose 3.
The recommended schedule for people with significant immunocompromising conditions, regardless of age, is 3 doses, with an interval of 2 months between dose 1 and dose 2, and 6 months between dose 2 and dose 3.
For more information about HPV and the HPV vaccine, please see the following links;
- The Australian Immunisation Handbook
- HPV vaccine website
- Mamamia’s article answering your questions about the HPV vaccine
- The Conversation ‘four things you should know about HPV vaccinations’
- Safety of HPV vaccines; a review
- Systemic review and metanalysis of the safety and efficacy of HPV vaccines
- Answering HPV vaccine concerns; a matter of science and time
- Debunking the myths about Gardisil
- Vaxopedia – information about the HPV vaccine
- HPV vaccine safety and effectiveness – a summary of the evidence
- More on the evidence demonstrating the safety of Gardasil
- UptoDate patient education summary on HPV and the vaccine to prevent it
- No evidence HPV vaccine associated with ovarian failure – study
Page reviewed November 2018.