Almost 200 people die each year from cancer associated with HPV, report finds

Almost 200 people die every year in Ireland due to cancers associated with human papillomavirus (HPV), with women twice as likely to die from such illnesses as men.

The finding is included in a report on HPV cancers from the National Cancer Registry of Ireland, the public body tasked with collecting and classifying information on all cancer cases occurring in the State.

HPV is a group of viruses known to infect the genital area, the mouth and the throat. It is well-established as an important risk factor for cervical, vaginal, vulval, penile and anorectal cancers, as well as head and neck cancers. Almost all sexually active people develop HPV infections and about half of these involve a high-risk HPV-type virus.

The most common HPV-associated cancer is cervical cancer and almost all cervical cancer is caused by chronic HPV infection. Only 2 per cent of cervical cancers diagnosed in Ireland during the 2017 to 2021 period were not associated with HPV infection.

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According to the registry’s report, there are an estimated 641 cases of new HPV-associated cancers diagnosed and 196 cancer deaths per year in Ireland, most of which are potentially preventable by vaccination.

Between 2017 and 2021, HPV-associated cancers accounted for 2.7 per cent of invasive cancers, excluding non-melanoma skin cancer. For adults aged 20 to 49 years, these cancers account for 7 per cent of all diagnoses.

The incidence rates of most HPV-associated cancers, with the exception of cervical carcinoma, are increasing. The report attributed the decrease in cervical carcinoma to the national cervical screening programme.

Routine cervical screening can reduce the incidence of cervical cancer through the identification and removal of abnormal cells before they develop, the report said.

It has been estimated that screening, in combination with HPV vaccination and cervical cancer treatment, will result in the elimination of cervical cancer as a public health problem in Ireland by 2040.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines the elimination of cervical cancer as fewer than 4 cases per 100,000 women. Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly last year said Ireland is “on track” to achieve this goal.

HPV vaccine rates dropped in 2016 due to what the Minister described as “a really sinister campaign of lies and scaremongering”, which had “inevitably led to women in Ireland contracting cervical cancer who otherwise wouldn’t have”. The rate fell to about 55 per cent, but had recovered to about 70 per cent last year. The WHO target is 90 per cent.

Speaking about the report, Prof Deirdre Murray, the registry’s director, said cancers associated with HPV are “potentially highly preventable” and that vaccination and regular screening play crucial roles in preventing and detecting these.

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