Mysore/Mysuru: With January being observed as Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, 193 girl students from four High Schools in Mysuru Rural were vaccinated against Human Papillomavirus (HPV), the virus responsible for cervical cancer.

This first-of-its-kind initiative in Mysuru, a integrated vaccination drive with school-based community education. Interactive educational sessions were presented to school girls, their teachers and parents on HPV, cervical cancer and its prevention.

The girl students were then administered with the Gardasil-9 vaccine which protects against nine high-risk or cancer-causing HPV types.

Public Health Research Institute of India (PHRII), a health services and research-based organisation working for women’s health in Mysuru, conducted this programme in collaboration with JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research and was sponsored by Sun Pharma through their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative.

Cervical cancer remains the second most common cancer among women in India. While 70 to 97 percent protection is available based on the type of HPV vaccine, one in three deaths among women due to cervical cancer across the globe continues to occur in India.

As the Government of India expressed support for the HPV vaccine while presenting the interim budget, efforts such as Mysuru’s HPV programme are essential in building awareness about cervical cancer and encouraging timely vaccination and screening.