KEY POINTS:
A Government decision not to fund a new cervical cancer vaccine in this year's Budget has angered some doctors.
Health Minister Peter Hodgson announced last week that funding for Gardasil would not be included in tomorrow's Budget.
New Zealand HPV (human papilloma virus) Project chairman Professor Ron Jones said Gardasil was the most effective vaccine available and doctors were extremely disappointed by the decision.
"It appears that once again women's health is being marginalised due to budget constraints."
The vaccine, which was fast-tracked for use in New Zealand by Medsafe last year because it was so effective, presented the opportunity to invest in cervical cancer prevention.
"It's a real tragedy, particularly for Maori and Pacific Island women who are under-represented in the screening programme and consequently have disproportionately high rates of the disease."
Gardasil is at present available on a doctor's prescription at a cost of $450 for three doses that offer five years' protection.
Dr Jones said the implications of Gardasil not being publicly funded were enormous.
"By targeting girls before they become sexually active, the rates of HPV infection, and consequently cervical cancer, can be dramatically reduced.
"The immunisation schedule is only reviewed every two years - so it now appears a publicly funded cervical cancer vaccine will not be available until June 2010 at the earliest.
"This means that over the next three years as many as 150,000 schoolgirls will have moved off a potential vaccination programme and into the high-risk age group for exposure to HPV."
HPV Project is a group of health professionals who distribute information and support to doctors and their patients about HPV.
Late last year the Australian Government agreed to fund Gardasil for females aged 12 to 26.
Mr Hodgson said Gardasil or a similar vaccine would be considered in a year or two.
About 180 New Zealand women are diagnosed with cervical cancer every year and around 60 die from the disease.
Two studies into Gardasil published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine showed the vaccine gave complete protection against the four strains of HPV which accounted for 70 per cent of advanced cervical pre-cancers and cervical cancers, and 90 per cent of genital warts.
- NZPA
