New data presented at the 19th International Congress on Anti-Cancer Treatment in Paris show the Merck & Co. vaccine Gardasil sustained 98 to 100 percent efficacy in preventing vaccine virus type-related precancerous cervical lesions in young women. The data were from a combined analysis of four Phase II/III studies involving more than 20,000 women.
"The results include by far the longest follow-up for any cervical cancer vaccine in large Phase III studies and strongly substantiate the evidence that the protection provided by Gardasil will be long-lasting," said Elmar Joura of the University of Vienna.
Gardasil targets the strains of human papillomavirus that cause 70 percent of cervical cancer cases.
In light of the findings, the Phase III trials' independent monitors recommended the studies be halted so women in the placebo group also could receive the benefits of the vaccination.
02/07/08
AUSTRIA: More Trial Data Back Merck’s Cervical Cancer Shot
Source: http://www.reuters.com ::Ben Hirschler; Courtesy of the CDC National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention