Professor Daniel Kelly unveils European resolution aimed at eradicating HPV by 2030

Last month, Professor Daniel Kelly from the School of Healthcare Sciences, chaired the European Cancer Organisation (ECCO) Summit in Brussels which unanimously endorsed a resolution aimed at eradicating the human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV causes cervical as well as some other cancers, including those of the head, neck and genitals in both sexes.

The resolution, which was prepared by ECCO and its member societies, states that “by 2030, effective strategies to eliminate cancers caused by HPV as a public health problem should be implemented in all European countries.”

Every year, cervical cancer causes more than 300,000 deaths worldwide and yet according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), it is one of the most preventable and curable forms of cancer (if detected early enough and treated appropriately).

Unveiling the resolution at the Summit in Brussels, Professor Daniel Kelly said;

“It’s clear that there is a lot of evidence out there about the efficacy and potential of vaccination”.

“Elimination is possible with the right infrastructure. This is something that we can prevent, so we need to get the message out there.”

Alongside the resolution, a detailed action plan outlining how it could be facilitated was announced, including the inclusion of boys as well as girls in the vaccination programme.

One action is a call for all European national cancer plans to include measures to deliver the HPV vaccination by 2025. Another is to have vaccination programmes up and running across Europe by 2030.

“We would like 90% of adolescents to have access to vaccination by 2030” Kelly stated.

The EU’s Health Commissioner Yventis Andriukaitis attended the ECCO Summit and called for greater investment in cancer prevention, including HPV vaccination, across Europe.