Epidemiology and prevention of Human Papillomavirus

Human papillomavirus is the most common sexually transmitted infection, and skin-to-skin genital contact is sufficient for virus transmission. Cervical cancer is the second-most common cancer in women living in less developed regions, with an estimated 445,000 new cases in 2012 and 230,000 deaths every year. Until now, more than 200 types of HPV have been identified, and about 15 types (HPV-16, -18, -31, -33, -35, -39, -45, -51, -52, -56, -58, -59, -66, -68, -82) have been shown to cause cervical cancer because they are able to transform infected cells into malignant tumor cells. The bivalent vaccine containing the serotypes 16 and 18 and the quadrivalent vaccine containing the serotypes 16, 18, 6 and 11, have been used in Italy for many years. The European Medicines Agency authorized marketing of the Gardasil 9 vaccine in the European Union on June 2015. Today, Public Health targets the immunization of adolescents of both genders based on new and important scientific evidence for maximum protection from all HPV related pathologies directly preventable with vaccination.