HPV Vaccine Recommended for Wide Use

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which provides key recommendations for purchase and use of vaccines in the US, said on Thursday that HPV vaccine against cervical cancer should be given routinely to 11- to 12-year-old girls (see the CDC press release and a related article in MarketWatch). This unanimous recommendation comes a mere three weeks after the product's approval by the FDA -- a telling example of how quickly decisions can be made when sound institutional processes exist to assess evidence and determine the appropriate actions to benefit the public's health. Something to shoot for in global health!