Human papillomavirus vaccinations ‘will not be extended to boys’

The government has decided not to expand the current vaccination programme for human papillomavirus (HPV) to include boys.

A ruling from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has determined that the current evidence does not justify offering the vaccine to boys from a cost-effectiveness perspective.

Mary Ramsay, head of immunisation at Public Health England, stated that the evidence base shows that the risk of HPV infection in males can be dramatically reduced simply by achieving high uptake of the vaccine among girls.

With participation in the vaccination scheme among adolescent girls currently shown to be consistently high at over 85 percent, it was deemed that an expansion of the programme "would not represent a good use of NHS resources".

This initial recommendation will now be subject to a public consultation, with a final decision to be made in October. However, a number of public health organisations have criticised the decision, saying that it overlooks the benefits that vaccinating boys would offer.

Shirley Cramer of the Royal Society for Public Health said: "We hope that the government's advisory committee reconsider this decision as soon as possible and put the public's health and wellbeing before cost-saving."

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