ENGLAND — Researchers at Queen Mary University of London published a study in The Lancet examining the impact of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine on cervical cancer mortality in England. The study found that zero cervical cancer deaths were recorded among women aged 20 to 24 in England between 2020 and 2024.

Approximately 23 cervical cancer deaths would have been expected in that age group during this period had vaccination not occurred. The research indicated that approximately 200 lives have been saved in England from cervical cancer due to the vaccine. Cervical cancer deaths declined by 80 percent between 2015 and 2019 among 20- to 24-year-olds who received the vaccine.

England introduced the HPV vaccine for school-age girls in 2008. The U.K. government has pledged to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem by 2040. The World Health Organization states that 90 percent vaccination coverage is required to eliminate cervical cancer.

Peter Sasieni, a professor at Queen Mary University of London, said, "It's incredible to think that a single jab can almost eliminate a particular type of cancer." Vaccination rates for HPV among girls in England were 76 percent by age 15 in 2024 to 2025. The U.K. also began offering the HPV vaccine to boys in 2019.

Michelle Mitchell, Chief Executive of Cancer Research UK, said, "We know the HPV vaccine is extremely effective at stopping cervical cancer before it starts and for the first time these findings show it is saving lives." The organization funded the research. Allison Portnoy, an Assistant Professor of Global Health at Boston University School of Public Health, said, "The study makes an important contribution to the literature on the population-level impact of HPV vaccination by connecting mortality data and HPV vaccine coverage data, but these are indeed population-level rather than individual-level data."

HPV causes 99 percent of cervical cancer cases and spreads through close skin-to-skin contact. While most HPV infections clear without medical intervention, some cause abnormal cell changes that can lead to cancer. Children vaccinated against HPV at ages 12 to 13 have close to zero risk of dying from cervical cancer before age 30.