India’s first locally produced quadrivalent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine against cervical cancer will be available within months. The vaccine will be available to people for Rs 200-400. Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh attended the event on Thursday to announce the completion of the vaccine science.

The Serum Institute of India (SII) produces the vaccine in collaboration with the Department of Biotechnology (DBT). “The cervical cancer vaccine will be available in a few months. We will give it to our country first and then to the world. It may cost between Rs 200 and Rs 400, but the price has not been finalised. We are preparing for production within two years. Two hundred million doses” said SII CEO Adar Poonawalla.

The Directorate General of Drug Control of India (DGCI) has granted SII marketing authorisation to manufacture the indigenous qHPV vaccine after the Subject matter Expert Committee (SEC) of the Central Drug Standards Control Organisation recommended approval of the CERVAVAC vaccine for successful Phase III clinical trials.

Cervical cancer is the second leading cause of cancer among women aged 14-44 in India, accounting for approximately 20% of cervical cancer cases worldwide. The country has 123,000 cases and about 67,000 deaths each year. While cervical cancer vaccines are available, not only are the vaccines expensive, but the lack of regular screening and awareness means millions of women don’t get vaccinated promptly. For example, women need to get the GARDASIL 9 vaccine, which protects against several strains of HPV that cause cervical cancer, by age 26.

HPV is a sexually transmitted disease and the leading cause of cervical cancer. In addition to using barrier protection during sex, the qHPV vaccine remains the best way to protect women from cervical cancer. Health care officials told PTI that CERVAVAC’s antibody responses to all HPV strains and all age groups were nearly 1,000 times higher than baseline.