Only 10% of fifth-graders have received a first dose of vaccination against the papilloma virus, according to the first preliminary figures from the Ministry of Health, which is waiting for the final results of its first campaign in middle schools to decide on possible adjustments this year. next.

“According to partial reports from regional health authorities, at least 92,262 students at universities had been vaccinated as of December 23, 2023.”the Directorate-General for Health told Agence France-Presse. “At this stage of the HPV vaccination campaign at the university, the numbers show a student vaccination rate of 5^e around 10% “she specifies.

Promised by Mr. Macron at the beginning of 2023, this vaccination campaign was launched against human papillomavirus (HPV), the cause of numerous types of cancer – cervical, vulvar, vagina, ENT, anus. the beginning of Octoberin all public universities and voluntary private institutions.

A vaccination that is far from what was expected

Thanks to the information and communication campaign carried out by the National Cancer Institute (INCA) since September, “It is possible that the vaccination campaign proposed at the university will lead to an increase in vaccinations.” of practicing doctors, judged the General Directorate of Health.

Interviewed by AFP in November, then-health minister Aurélien Rousseau admitted the government’s original target was unlikely to be met, but hoped 150,000 fifth-grade students could be vaccinated this year. “It’s a start, it takes persistence”he responded, evoking the heterogeneity between regions and families and the need for it“Customize the tools”.

At the beginning of January, officials from the French Society of Colposcopy and Cervico-vaginal Pathology (SFCPCV) concluded, with a first look, that this vaccination was far from what was expected “disappointing”. For the SFCPCV, the campaign suffered, among other things, from an administrative organization “a bit cumbersome and complicated”.

“The universities received large envelopes that they could distribute to parents with an information letter and a prospectus (…) and the authorization form to be signed by both parents. And on the day of vaccination you will also need the health record.”recalled Geoffroy Canlorbe, general secretary of the SFCPCV and practitioner at the AP-HP.

“The main error is related to the lack of direct and effective communication with parents.”estimates, to AFP, Julia Maruani, vice-president of the SFCPCV and gynecologist in Marseille.

80% by 2030

The campaign could also have been affected the death of a schoolboy near Nantes, victim of a fall after discomfort after vaccination. The General Secretariat for Catholic Education recommended the end of October “expose” in Catholic universities under contract from “Caution”.

The administrative investigation launched after the student’s death produced no leads “Dysfunction in the organization of the vaccination campaign”, according to the regional health department. In mid-November, the National Agency for the Safety of Medicines and Healthcare products (ANSM) recommended that teenagers should lie down or sit on the floor and lean against a wall for fifteen minutes after the injection.

A more precise estimate of the total number of students vaccinated with the first dose will be made in the first quarter of 2024, and the full evaluation of this first year of the campaign – that is, the number of vaccinated students who have received two doses of the vaccine – will not be announced until the end of the school year.

Based on the findings from this assessment, “The authorities will make any adjustments” next year, assured the Ministry of Health. Regardless of whether this vaccination takes place at the university or in the city, the goal is to achieve a vaccination rate of 80% by 2030, as set out in the ten-year strategy to combat cancer 2021-2030, he reiterated to AFP.