Vaccine set for market
A vaccine to prevent cervical cancer will soon be available in Thailand, having been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
"The vaccine should be in hospitals next month," Dr Sukij Kijsiripornchai, a director at MSD (Thailand) Co, told a press conference yesterday. Dr Sukij said Thailand would be the 71st country in the world to use the vaccine that protects women from the human papilloma virus (HPV) 16 and 18 - which causes about 70 per cent of cases of cervical cancer. However, a woman must be young to receive the vaccine, which is quite expensive. Three shots must be injected when they are aged from nine to 26. The vaccine boasts a higher efficiency if injections are given to girls aged nine to 15. Sukij said each vaccine shot would cost less than Bt4,000 According to the National Cancer Institute, 3,000 patients die of cervical cancer and 6,000 more are diagnosed with the disease every year.
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