Updates on HPV vaccination outside the U.S.

Those looking for information on the policy discussions and implementation of Gardasil worldwide will be very interested in the latest issue of HPV Today, an international newsletter on all things related to HPV research, policy, and practice.

Among the items in the issue: a short piece by Dr. Luisa Lina Villa, a Brazilian cancer researcher, updating the international regulatory landscape for Gardasil. She notes that more than 40 bodies around the world have approved the vaccine thus far. Australia, New Zealand, Peru, and Mexico are among the few to approve the vaccine for males as well as females. Dr. Villa also describes some of the implementation challenges faced by her native Brazil, among them cost and the absence of an adolescent vaccination infrastructure.

Also in the issue: a very helpful table outlining the different approvals (by age, gender, condition, etc.) that Gardasil has received by various regulatory bodies around the world and a brief report on the results of a survey in Australia exploring whether the vaccine could promote unprotected sex among Australian teens. (The short answer: no)