Karachi: Declaring the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine as a vaccination against “breast cancer,” senior Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazlur Rehman Group) leader Rashid Mahmood Soomro on Thursday presented a resolution against the government’s vaccination drive, exposing a lack of understanding about the public health initiative meant to protect adolescent girls from cervical cancer.
Speaking at a party rally in Karachi, Soomro alleged that the vaccine was being forcibly administered to girls to make them infertile. “We demand that the government immediately stop forcibly administering this vaccine to our girls in the name of breast cancer prevention. This is being done to make our daughters infertile,” he claimed, before insisting that expert doctors must first brief political, religious, and nationalist leaders on the vaccine before any further decision is made by his party.
His remarks, however, were met with concern by government officials and medical experts, who said such statements only fuel propaganda and mislead the public. They clarified that the HPV vaccine has nothing to do with breast cancer and is scientifically proven to prevent cervical cancer, the second most common cancer among women in Pakistan.
The nationwide HPV vaccination campaign was launched earlier this month with the support of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, WHO, UNICEF, and civil society partners including Dopasi Foundation. The initiative aims to vaccinate millions of school-going girls between the ages of 9 and 14, protecting them against cervical cancer caused by persistent HPV infection.
According to health experts, the vaccine is one of the safest in the world, already in use across 150 countries. Each year, more than 5,000 women in Pakistan are newly diagnosed with cervical cancer and nearly 3,000 die from the disease. Officials stress that widespread vaccination is the only effective way to curb the growing toll.
Government representatives said resistance to the vaccine is based solely on misconceptions and misinformation, particularly spread through social media and repeated by uninformed groups. “This vaccine has nothing to do with fertility. It prevents cervical cancer and saves lives,” a senior health official said, urging political and religious leaders to avoid spreading confusion.
The Ministry of Health and partner organizations are continuing the campaign despite opposition, emphasizing that protecting young girls from a deadly but preventable cancer is a national priority.
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