Cervarix induced ABs present in cervix two years post-treatment

UK-based drug major GlaxoSmithKline says that new results show that antibodies stimulated by its human papilloma virus vaccine Cervarix were present post-vaccination. The finding, which was announced at this year's International Papillomavirus Conference in Beijing, China, demonstrated that the antibodies to HPVs 16 and 18 were detectable in the cervix two years after the three-dose treatment course had been completed.

Hugues Bogaerts, vice president of worldwide medical affairs at GSK Biologicals, said: "the high correlation between antibodies induced by Cervarix in the bloodstream and those able to reach the cervix provides further insights on the quality of the immune response induced by the vaccine." He added that the firm expects the high correlation to be maintained for at least five years, according to clinical trial data (Marketletters passim).