CDC panel gives thumbs up to vaccine against nine HPV types

Gardasil 9, a vaccine that offers protection against nine types of HPV, has been recommended for use in 11- and 12-year-old girls and boys and in females ages 13 to 26 and males ages 13 to 21 who have not previously been vaccinated or treated with the three-dose series.

Business Wire

A federal vaccine advisory committee voted February 26 to recommend use of an expanded version of the human papillomavirus shot marketed as Gardasil.

The move, by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, clears the way for the broader-coverage vaccine, called Gardasil 9, to be used in the clinic. Current vaccines offer protection against four types of HPV, which causes cervical cancer and is linked to other cancers. The new shot expands protection to nine types of HPV.

While the Food and Drug Administration’s licensure of Gardasil 9 was granted in December, doctors need CDC guidance on any new vaccine’s dosage and scheduling of shots before putting it into use. The new recommendations add Gardasil 9 to shots routinely scheduled for girls and boys age 11-12, but can be given as early as age 9. Gardasil 9 is also recommended for females age 13-26 and for males ages 13 to 21 who have not completed a three-shot series of an HPV vaccine.