Vaccination against papillomavirus is increasing following a campaign in secondary schools, but it still needs to be improved.

In France, since the start of a campaign in secondary schools, including community medicine, there has been a noticeable increase in the vaccination of adolescents against the papilloma virus, but it still needs to be improved, according to data published Friday by French Public Health.

Vaccination coverage has increased

“Accounting for vaccinations in college, as well as in private practice”Between the start and end of the first phase, targeting 5th graders, vaccination coverage increased by 17 points among girls and 15 points among 12-year-old boys.

Overall, in cities and colleges, the proportion of girls born in 2011 who received at least one dose of the HPV (human papillomavirus) vaccine is “estimated at 55%” at the end of 2023, SpF reported. For boys it is 41%.

“This increase is part of a trend toward increasing HPV vaccination coverage.”, the health agency noted. In the last quarter of 2022, over the same period as the campaign, HPV antiviral coverage increased by 4 points among girls and boys of the same age.

“A more complete analysis, based in part on a study of college parents, will assess the actual gains in HPV vaccination coverage achieved by the campaign.”French Public Health also clarified.

He is not “it rules out the possibility that some teenage girls whose HPV vaccination was scheduled in the city in the coming months would take advantage of the opportunity to get vaccinated at school”.

The target set by the Department of Health in early September 2023 was for at least 30% of Year 5 students to be vaccinated at college for this first graduating class. And preliminary official data from early February showed that only 10% of 5th grade students had received their first dose of anti-HPV.

Campaign launched October 2023

Promised at the beginning of 2023 by Emmanuel Macron, this vaccination campaign against the human papillomavirus, which causes numerous types of cancer (cervical, vulvar, vaginal, ENT, anal, etc.), was launched in early October in all public colleges and voluntary private institutions.

French public health has also noted an increase in vaccination coverage among older adolescents.more important than in previous years..

Globally “Although there has been a marked increase in human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination coverage, vaccination coverage still needs to improve among girls and especially among boys.”, the agency reports. The goal is to reach 80% by 2030.