Cape Town - Almost 90 000 young girls in the Western Cape are to be vaccinated against cervical cancer as part of the government’s efforts to reduce the deadly disease among women.
The roll-out of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is set to run from March 10 to April 11, followed by further inoculation between September and October.
Jo-Anne Otto, spokeswoman for the provincial Department of Health, said nine-year-old girls or Grade 4s in all public schools in the province would be targeted by the campaign.
The mass roll-out is part of the Department of Health initiative to vaccinate more than 400 000 girls.
Cervical cancer is the most deadly among women in South Africa with one in eight dying of it. Research has shown that vaccination is the safest and most cost effective method of prevention.
Otto said the province was preparing to vaccinate about 84 000 girls in public and specialised education facilities.
“Keep in mind that each girl requires two doses of the serum, with a six-month waiting period between doses. In total the department will administer close to 168 000 doses of the vaccine during this year,” she said.
Girls needed to receive both injections to ensure effectiveness. - Cape Argus