We are participating in the National Immunization Program with a total of 3.1 million doses of the HPV vaccine for the full program
Jakarta (ANTARA) - State-owned pharmaceutical holding PT Bio Farma has prepared 3.1 million doses of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine Nusagard to support the government's efforts to eliminate cervical cancer in Indonesia by 2030.

"Cervical cancer case data for 2022 in Indonesia was around 36,633 cases," PT Bio Farma President Director Shadiq Akasya highlighted during the Nusagard vaccine's launch in Jakarta on Wednesday.

The development of science, medicine, and pharmacy can help prevent cervical cancer, specifically the use of the HPV vaccine in the recommended dosage, he added.

Akasya said that this year, the government has initiated cervical cancer prevention through the National Immunization Program (PIN) as a form of protective measure.

Bio Farma is taking part in the program by providing the Nusagard HPV vaccine, which is being produced in collaboration with a global partner, PT Merck Sharp & Dohme Indonesia (MSD).

The cooperation established by the two parties includes vaccine procurement and technology transfer to meet the domestic component level (TKDN), Akasya said.

"We are participating in the National Immunization Program with a total of 3.1 million doses of the HPV vaccine for the full program," he added.

He informed that the Nusagard vaccine is a 4-valent HPV vaccine with subunit recombinant protein technology, which was transferred from MSD's Gardasil vaccine and can control the high risk of HPV with long-term effectiveness.

Under the program, the HPV vaccine will be provided twice at an interval of six months, with the first injection given this year and the second administered in 2024 free of charge, he said.

On the same occasion, Deputy Health Minister Dante Saksono Harbuwono said that the Nusagard vaccine has been integrated into the National Immunization Program, which targets all female students studying in grades 5 and 6 of elementary school.

The program launched in August is targeting around 2.9 million participants spread across 114 districts/cities of Indonesia, he informed.

"At least 95 percent of girls must be vaccinated this year," Harbuwono stressed.

According to him, globally, someone dies of cervical cancer every 2 minutes, while in Indonesia, the death rate is around 21 thousand every year, making it the second-highest mortality rate after breast cancer.

He said that cervical cancer is a catastrophic disease with state health insurer BPJS Health shelling out Rp4.5 trillion every year in treatment costs.

"We want to invest in reverse. We are entering the downstream phase with Bio Farma carrying out the launching of Nusagard as a form of providing access to (treatment for) achieving cervical cancer elimination (target) by 2030 in Indonesia," he added.

Head of the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM), Penny K. Lukito, who was also present at the event, said that based on an evaluation, the Nusagard vaccine has an efficacy of 95–100 percent and can offer protection for 10 to 12 years.

"This vaccine has also been proven to prevent cervical cancer in children aged 9 to 45 years and in men aged 9 to 26 years," she informed.

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Translator: Andi Firdaus, Resinta S
Editor: Sri Haryati
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