This document replaces the 2017 WHO position paper on HPV vaccines. It contains off-label recommendations.
This position paper is concerned with vaccines and vaccination against diseases caused by human papillomaviruses (HPVs). Its primary focus is the prevention of cervical cancer, given the role of prophylactic HPV vaccination as a foundational pillar of the WHO Global Strategy to Accelerate the Elimination of Cervical Cancer as a Public Health Problem. It is estimated that implementation of this strategy could prevent 60 million cervical cancer cases and 45 million deaths over the next 100 years. It also considers the broader spectrum of cancers and other diseases preventable by HPV vaccination. It incorporates recent information regarding HPV vaccines, including the licensure of new HPV vaccines and evidence on vaccine immunogenicity and effectiveness with reduced dose schedules.
Recommendations on the use of HPV vaccines were issued by the WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on Immunization at its meeting in April 2022, and subsequently endorsed by WHO.