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Health & Medicine
Mahesh

01/09/22 12:43 PM IST

India to launch indigenous vaccine against cervical cancer

In News 
  • India’s first indigenously developed quadrivalent Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine for the prevention of cervical cancer will be launched.
  • Cervical cancer in India ranks as the second most frequent cancer among women between 15 and 44 years of age.
  • The cervical cancer vaccine, Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus vaccine (qHPV), is developed by the Serum Institute of India (SII) and the Department of Biotechnology(DBT).
About HPV
  • Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common viral infection of the reproductive tract.
  • There are more than 100 types of HPV.
  • More than 40 types of HPV are spread through direct sexual contact.
  • Out of these 40, two cause genital warts, while about a dozen of HPV cause different types of cancer including cervical, anal, oropharyngeal, penile, vulvar and vaginal.
Cervical Cancer 
  • It is a type of cancer that occurs in the cells of the cervix - the lower part of the uterus that connects to the vagina.
  • Various strains of the Human papillomavirus (HPV) play a role in causing most cervical cancer.
  • When exposed to HPV, the body's immune system typically prevents the virus from doing harm. In a small percentage of people, however, the virus survives for years, contributing to the process that causes some cervical cells to become cancer cells.
  • The HPV vaccine (Cervarix) protects against two of the cancer-causing strains, which are HPV 16 and 18.
Cancer
  • It is a large group of diseases that can start in almost any organ or tissue of the body when abnormal cells grow uncontrollably, go beyond their usual boundaries to invade adjoining parts of the body and/or spread to other organs. The latter process is called metastasizing and is a major cause of death from cancer.
  • A neoplasm and malignant tumor are other common names for cancer.
  • Lung, prostate, colorectal, stomach and liver cancer are the most common types of cancer in men, while breast, colorectal, lung, cervical and thyroid cancer are the most common among women.
  • World Cancer Day is organized by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) and celebrated each year on 4th February.
Source- Indian Express 

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