India to provide 4 crore doses of HPV vaccines in the Indo-Pacific

New Delhi: India has committed $7.5 million to provide vaccines to prevent Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection as well as sampling and testing kits for the detection of cervical cancer in the Indo-Pacific. It joined Australia, Japan, and the US to launch a programme to combat the disease.  

US President Joe Biden extended his 'Cancer Moonshot' initiative to help the Indo-Pacific nations fight against cervical cancer, at the 4th in-person summit of the Quad.

"I'm proud to announce the Quad Cancer Moonshot to end cancer around the world, starting with cervical cancer. It is one of the most preventable cancers, yet every year 150,000 women in the Indo-Pacific die from it," Biden posted on X after the launch of the programme.

New Delhi also offered its cost-effective and efficient Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid method for cervical cancer screening as a model for the Indo-Pacific region. The method allows healthcare workers to detect early signs of cervical cancer without the need for advanced laboratory infrastructure.

The Serum Institute of India, in partnership with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the Quad, has committed to support orders of up to 4 crore HPV vaccine doses for the Indo-Pacific region.

"A very cost-effective ongoing cervical cancer screening program on a mass scale is running in India. Besides, India also runs the world's largest health insurance scheme," Modi said at the event.

"India has also developed its own vaccine for cervical cancer. And new treatment protocols are being launched with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence," he said, displaying a willingness to share this expertise. He also announced that India would provide support for radiotherapy treatment and capacity building for cancer prevention in the region.

Biden, then the vice president of the US, had launched the Cancer Moonshot in 2016 after one of his sons died of disease.