Will review ‘controversial’ vaccine decision:Minister

Vishav Bharti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 14

Taking cognisance of The Tribune report about the launch of cervical cancer vaccine in the state on the basis an “erroneous” study, the government to announced to review the decision.

In a statement today, Health Minister Brahm Mohindra said in view of the current situation and new evidence, “we will have a relook at the cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit of the vaccine before expanding the programme to the rest of the state. “We will also technically study the PGI research on the subject,” he said.

The Tribune had highlighted that how free HPV vaccination (for cervical cancer) introduced for schoolgirls last month had triggered a controversy at the national level as the PGI study, on whose basis of the vaccine was introduced, had been dismissed as “grossly erroneous” by a group of scientists associated with National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI).

The minister said the vaccine was introduced by the previous government on the basis of population and hospital-based cancer registries prepared by the ICMR, which clearly showed higher incidence of cervical cancer in Bathinda and Mansa districts.

He said the technical expert group consisting of experts from the ICMR, AIIMS, IARC, NICPR, WHO and PGIMER had recommended the vaccine.

However, the PGI doctors, who had conducted the study, have dismissed the “erroneous study” charge, claiming that the interpretation done by NTAGI experts was not correct.