HPV National Vaccination Creating 'Half Immunity'... Will It Expand to Boys Next Year?

The expansion of the National Immunization Program (NIP), considered an essential condition for the effective immunity formation through the only cancer-preventive vaccine, the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, is expected to take place starting next year.

[Photo by Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency]

According to political and medical circles on the 10th, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) is understood to be pushing for the expansion of support for HPV vaccination for boys in the process of drafting next year’s budget. A KDCA official stated, "Nothing has been finalized yet," adding, "We will comprehensively proceed with related ministries considering the financial authorities and vaccine supply possibilities," and explained, "This issue is also included as a national agenda, and we are currently in the stage of consultation to expand it."

Currently, the national immunization program for HPV vaccines supports only the bivalent and quadrivalent vaccines for female adolescents aged 12 to 17 and low-income women aged 18 to 26. However, HPV can cause not only cervical cancer in women but also genital warts, anal cancer, and oropharyngeal cancer in men. Moreover, since the risk of transmission through sexual contact is high, there are ongoing criticisms that vaccination targeting only women has limitations. As of last year, the HPV vaccination rate among men in Korea was only about 3%.

President Yoon Seok-yeol recognized these issues since his candidacy and promised free HPV 9-valent vaccination for both males and females. After taking office, it was also included as a national agenda. In the priority research results for expanding the national immunization program announced by the KDCA last January, expanding HPV 9-valent vaccine vaccination for 12-year-old girls was ranked third in priority, and the plan to extend it to 12-year-old boys was ranked sixth, indicating a high priority.

The medical community continues to voice the need for expanding HPV vaccination. Professor Lee Se-young of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology at Chung-Ang University Hospital emphasized the expansion of national immunization support for the HPV vaccine, saying, "It is clear that HPV vaccination can protect against HPV-related cancers and diseases," and added, "In an ultra-low birthrate era, this is an urgent task that can no longer be postponed for the health of future generations." Academic societies such as the Korean Society of Gynecologic Oncology, the Korean Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and the Korean Society of Otorhinolaryngology are also reportedly planning to soon issue a statement urging the expansion of national immunization support for simultaneous HPV vaccination for both males and females.