John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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674. To ask the Minister for Health his plans for the launch of Ireland’s cervical cancer elimination strategy this year; the measures he intends to take to help increase vaccination rates to the required levels for elimination to occur; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29164/24]

Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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705. To ask the Minister for Health for an update on plans for the launch of the cervical cancer elimination strategy this year, including what measures he intends to take to help increase vaccination rates to the required levels for elimination to occur; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29245/24]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 674 and 705 together.

I was pleased in November 2023 to mark Cervical Cancer Elimination Day of Action by announcing Ireland is on target to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040 and publishing our roadmap, which charts our steps to elimination.

Currently, in Ireland, about 300 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer every year, and sadly 90 will die from it. Ireland was one of the first countries in the world to set a target for cervical cancer elimination. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines elimination of cervical cancer as fewer than 4 cases per 100,000 women. This would make cervical cancer rare, reducing the number of cases to the extent that it would no longer be a public health problem. The WHO strategy sets clear targets for all countries to achieve by 2030 to put them on course to elimination:

- 90% of girls vaccinated against HPV by age 15,

- 70% of women screened by age 35 and again by age 45, and

- 90% of people identified with cervical disease treated.

Ireland is in a strong position to exceed these targets and to reach our goal to eliminate cervical cancer within 17 years. The projected target date of 2040 results from a detailed modelling project with Australia’s Daffodil Centre, a leading cancer control and policy research centre. The modelling project used HPV vaccination rates, screening coverage, and population data from Ireland.

The HPV vaccination for boys and girls represents a significant breakthrough in our road to elimination. Ireland was among the first countries to introduce HPV vaccination through the National Immunisation Programme. Our HPV vaccination programme has been in place for girls since 2010 and for boys since 2019. In line with advice from the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC), the vaccine is administered in the first year of secondary school. Ireland recently ran a targeted HPV vaccination catch-up programme. The Laura Brennan HPV vaccination catch up programme commenced in late 2022 and ran until December 2023, offering HPV vaccines free of charge to females who were 24 years of age or younger and males who were 21 years of age or younger. Approximately 11,000 people received HPV vaccination through this programme. A provisional uptake rate of 78.4% was recorded for the HPV vaccine in first year for 2022/2023 (refers to single dose only, due to policy change to a single dose of HPV vaccine). I am pleased to note new research published by the National Screening Service shows early evidence of the positive protective effect of HPV vaccination in women attending their first cervical screening. As more vaccinated women enter the CervicalCheck screening programme, we expect a greater impact on moderate to severe cervical disease. The study has shown a reduction in the percentage of cervical screening tests showing serious precancer disease in women aged 25, from 3.7% (2015 to 2018) to 1.5% (2019 to 2022).

The HSE’s Cervical Cancer Elimination Strategy Group is comprised of the Department of Health, HSE’s National Screening Service, National Immunisation Office, and National Cancer Control Programme, National Women and Infants Health Programme, National Cancer Registry of Ireland, patient advocates, Marie Keating Foundation and Irish Cancer Society. The Group is working on an action plan to ensure that Ireland stays on course to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040. A recent public consultation was held to gather input from the public, aiming to incorporate diverse perspectives into Ireland's Cervical Cancer Elimination Action Plan, which is set to be launched in Quarter 4 of 2024.

The Government is committed to eradicating HPV-related cancers in Ireland. The Programme for Government commits to supporting the CervicalCheck Screening Programme and promoting the uptake of the HPV vaccine. Ireland’s Cervical Cancer Elimination campaign is supported by the Women’s Health Fund, an investment process under the Women’s Health Action Plan 2024-2025.

Vaccination against HPV has been shown to be effective in preventing cervical cancer. Along with regular screening for early detection and treatment, it is possible to make cervical cancer a rare disease. Continuing to vaccinate against HPV-related cancers and encouraging everyone to take up their offer of screening is the best way to ensure that we remain on the path to eliminating cervical cancer by 2040.