WHO backs HPV vaccination for girls as young as four

The World Health Organization’s vaccine experts on Tuesday recommended that countries consider routine human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination for girls as young as four if it helps improve low vaccination coverage.

Around 165 countries have introduced HPV vaccines, but global coverage remains at just 33 per cent, far below the WHO’s target of 90 per cent, said Anthony Scott, chair of the WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation (SAGE).

The WHO considers HPV vaccination a priority for all girls aged nine to 14.

In 2022, SAGE recommended one or two doses for girls aged nine to 14 and young women aged 15 to 20, while women over 21 were advised to receive two doses six months apart.

After reviewing updated evidence, the expert group concluded that a single-dose schedule for girls aged nine to 14 was the most efficient approach to achieving global vaccination targets.

“Countries may also consider routine vaccination (for) girls aged four to eight years if this is likely to result in increased vaccination uptake and coverage,” Scott told reporters.

Cervical cancer, caused by persistent HPV infection, was the world’s fifth most commonly diagnosed cancer among women in 2024, with around 604,000 new cases and 280,000 deaths, according to the WHO.

More than 95 million girls had received HPV vaccines by the end of 2025, said Kate O’Brien, head of the WHO’s vaccines department.

SAGE also recommended expanding single-dose vaccination to additional groups in order of priority, including catch-up vaccination for women up to age 25 and then 30, routine vaccination for boys aged nine to 14, and catch-up vaccination for males up to age 20.

Eight HPV vaccines were licensed as of 2025.

Cervical cancer remains the leading cause of cancer deaths among women in 26 countries, mainly in sub-Saharan Africa, parts of South and Central America, Melanesia and Southeast Asia, the WHO said.