Vaccination programme now in its second year
Parents of teenage girls are being encouraged to sign their daughters up to be vaccinated against cervical cancer.
Girls aged between 12 and 16 are being given an information pack containing vital information about the HPV Cervarix vaccination and a question and answer leaflet in the first week of the new school term.
They will also be given consent forms which need to be returned to their schools by Friday 25th September.
NHS Hammersmith and Fulham say the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) can damage cells on the cervix, which, if left untreated or undetected, can develop into cervical cancer over time.
Veena Bhumvra, NHS Hammersmith and Fulham Immunisation Improvement Coordinator, said: “Please ask your daughter if she has received the pack in the first week she returns to school and have a look at all of the information.
“We’d encourage all parents to sign the consent form and get their daughter to hand it back to the appropriate person in their school by 25th September.
“By signing your daughter up to have the HPV vaccination, you are helping protect her from a virus which can lead to a lot of unnecessary pain, discomfort and even early death."
The HPV vaccination programme began in schools last autumn and almost 1,000 girls aged between 12 and 18 have been vaccinated across the borough.
HPV is a sexually transmitted disease which is spread by having unprotected sex and intimate sexual contact.
The vaccination protects against the two strains of HPV, type 16 and 18, that cause cervical cancer in over 70% of women and involves three injections over a six-month period.
The vaccine is also on offer at the majority of NHS Hammersmith and Fulham GP surgeries.
For more information, visit www.immunisation.nhs.uk.
September 9, 2009