Gardasil approved in Europe for the prevention of anal cancer

Sanofi Pasteur MSD, the European joint venture formed between the vaccine division of French drug major Sanofi and US pharma giant Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK), says that the European Commission has granted marketing authorization for the use of Gardasil (quadrivalent human papillomavirus types 6, 11, 16, 18, recombinant vaccine) for the prevention of anal precancerous lesions and anal cancers causally related to certain oncogenic Human Papillomavirus (HPV) types in both males and females.

Quadrivalent HPV vaccine Gardasil is already approved from nine years of age for the prevention of cervical cancer and premalignant genital lesions (cervical, vulvar and vaginal) causally related to certain oncogenic Human Papillomavirus (HPV) types in females. It is also approved for the prevention of genital warts causally related to specific HPV types in both males and females.

HPV is a virus that causes a number of diseases and cancers, including cervical cancer in females and anal cancer in both males and females. This new indication acknowledges the properties of Gardasil, targeting the high-risk HPV types 16 and 18 which are causing the vast majority of anal cancers.