Have the costs and benefits of a mass HPV immunization program been fully assessed?
Initially, the investment of the HPV vaccine appears costly. However, information needs to be collected to assess how the health care system, cervical screening and follow-up programs will be impacted by the introduction of the vaccine. In the long term, the burden of disease on the health care system will decline with the reduction of HPV-related diseases, including genital warts, and cervical, vaginal and vulvar cancers and their pre-cursors. This will mean less health care visits and reduced costs to the health care system, as well as less pain and suffering among the women in Canada who would have suffered from this form of cancer. HPV immunization through school-based programs allows the provinces and territories to minimize the cost by immunizing students at the same time they receive other vaccines.
