Indonesia to produce Merck’s HPV vaccines to combat cervical cancer

Indonesia will produce Merck’s vaccines for human papillomavirus (HPV), the chief of its state-owned pharma company Bio Farma said recently, in a bid to combat HPV-linked cervical cancer in the country.

Honesti Basyir, Chief, Bio Farma, said in a statement that the company has signed a technology transfer deal with Merck to help produce the shots in the country.

Indonesian authorities aim to give the shots to 1.4 million girls next year, the company said, adding it aimed to produce 2.8 million doses given the two-shot regime recommended to inoculate against HPV-linked cervical cancer.

Edits by EP News Bureau