The study was based at King’s College London and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), as well as the National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS) run by NHS Digital.
The researchers estimate the HPV vaccine rollout has so far prevented some 450 cases of cervical cancer and some 17,200 cases of “precancerous conditions” over an 11-year period.
In their study, they wrote: “We estimated that by June 30, 2019, there had been 448 (339 to 556) fewer than expected cervical cancers and 17,235 (15,919 to 18,552) fewer than expected cases of CIN3 in vaccinated cohorts in England.”
Cancer Research UK scientists were the first to discover the link between cervical cancer and viruses more than 20 years ago.
Cervical cancer can be found anywhere in the cervix, which is the opening between the womb and vagina.