Adar Poonawalla, the CEO of Serum Institute of India, has announced the launch of the first home-made HPV vaccine. The launch event was attended by India's Home Minister, Amit Shah, and Director of Government & Regulatory Affairs at Serum Institute of India, Prakash K Singh. The HPV vaccine is being launched on India's National Girl Child Day and Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, and Poonawalla tweeted about the launch.
The company has spent around six to seven years developing the HPV vaccine, which will be an affordable option and rolled out in high capacity to overcome existing market shortages. The HPV vaccines protect against certain types of human papillomavirus and thus, prevent infection by these types of HPV. They protect against HPV types that cause the greatest risk of cervical cancer.
The HPV vaccine is known as the Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus vaccine 'CERVAVAC' and was announced last year by Dr Jitendra Singh, the Minister of State of the Ministry of Science and Technology & Earth Sciences. The qHPV CERVAVAC is the result of a partnership between Serum Institute, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC), and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Poonawalla is really excited about the launch of the HPV vaccine, as it will help prevent cervical cancer in women. He had also mentioned about the HPV vaccine at the World Economic Forum 2023 in Davos, where he said that the company had spent around six to seven years developing the vaccine. The HPV vaccine is an important development in the fight against cervical cancer and is expected to make a significant difference in the lives of many women.
