Around 200 cases of cervical cancer and 90 deaths from the disease could be prevented each year if uptake of the HPV vaccine increased across all regions by just 10 per cent above the current national average, a study has shown. Although 86 per cent of girls aged 12 and 13 receive the vaccine in England each year, there is a wide regional variation, with uptake ranging from as high as 96 per cent in some areas to as low as 62 per cent in others. Researchers calculated that if uptake of the vaccine in below-average areas increased to match the national average then 51 cervical cancer cases and 22 deaths could be prevented annually.

However, if every area attained 96 per cent coverage then 198 cases could be avoided and around 87 lives saved every year. Dr Michael England, medical director for vaccines at GlaxoSmithKline, said:

“These figures make it clear that, even though we have a relatively high uptake of the HPV vaccine, we could make a dramatic difference by making simple improvements to the programme.”