Dados do Resumo

Título

Decrease in HPV Vaccination and Increase in Cervical Cancer Incidence Between 2018 and 2022 in the Northeast Region of Brazil

Introdução

Cervical cancer is considered the third most common type of cancer among women in Brazil. Among its risk factors, sexually transmitted infections, such as Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection, are noteworthy. The vaccine against this virus is recommended as a form of primary prevention for this cancer. Despite this, there are few studies in the literature that analyze vaccination coverage in the Northeast region of Brazil and the incidence of cervical cancer.

Objetivo

This research aims to analyze the application of the HPV vaccine, quantify, and study the epidemiology of cervical cancer occurrence among the female population in the Northeast region of Brazil between 2018 and 2022.

Métodos

This research is an ecological and comparative study based on data collected from the Northeast region of Brazil using the National Immunization Program Information System (SI-PNI) and the Cancer Information System (SISCAN). The information gathered from the database includes doses of the quadrivalent HPV vaccine administered in woman, related to the year of application between 2018 and 2022, quantity by federative unit in the region and the number of doses administered, as well as quantification of diagnoses for malignant cervical neoplasms, including the respective year of diagnosis, age at cancer onset in patients and distribution by federative unit. Data not studied in this research include HPV doses administered to male patients and other types of malignant neoplasms. This research used secondary data from public domain sources provided by the SUS Informatics Department (DATASUS), and therefore did not require submission to the Research Ethics Committee.

Resultados

Between 2018 and 2022 a total of 3,270,333 doses of the female HPV vaccine were administered and there were 26,525 diagnoses of cervical cancer. The year with the highest number of vaccine doses administered was 2020, followed by 2018, with 748,831 doses (22.89%) and 699,506 doses (21.38%), respectively. The year 2022 had the fewest doses administered, with 568,483 doses (17.38%). Among the states in the Northeast region, Bahia had the highest number of doses administered, while Sergipe had the lowest number of applications. The year 2022 had the highest number of cervical cancer diagnoses, with 6,000 cases (22.62%), whereas 2018 had the fewest, with 4,492 cases (16.9%) over the five-year period. Regarding the epidemiological profile, the age group of 40 to 49 years had the highest number of cervical cancer diagnoses, representing 12.97% of the total. The year 2018 also had the highest number of women with a complete HPV vaccination schedule.

Conclusões

It can be concluded that there was a decrease in the administration of HPV vaccines and an increase in cervical cancer diagnoses over these five years in the Northeast region. This may be related to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, during which many false reports discouraged the population from getting vaccinated. Among the measures to encourage vaccination, health education stands out as a key tool for motivating and addressing concerns, empowering women to take an active role in their own care.

Palavras Chave

Brazil; Cervical cancer; HPV