A major study found no cervical cancer deaths among vaccinated women ages 20 to 24 in England. Yet Latina women in the U.S. continue to face some of the highest cervical cancer risks.
A landmark international study has delivered one of the strongest pieces of evidence yet that cervical cancer can be largely prevented.
Researchers found that young women who received the HPV vaccine at ages 12 or 13 had a risk of dying from cervical cancer before age 30 that was close to zero. Most striking, England recorded no cervical cancer deaths among women ages 20 to 24 between 2020 and 2024.
For parents, healthcare providers, and public health officials, the findings represent a major milestone in cancer prevention.
For Latino families in California, the study carries an even deeper message.
While cervical cancer rates have declined overall, Latina women continue to experience some of the highest rates of cervical cancer diagnosis in the United States. That means the communities that stand to benefit the most from HPV vaccination and regular screening are often the same communities still facing barriers to care.
What the New Research Found
The study, published in The Lancet and led by researchers at Queen Mary University of London, analyzed more than two decades of mortality data following the introduction of England’s HPV vaccination program.
Researchers estimated the vaccine has already prevented approximately 200 cervical cancer deaths in England.
The most significant finding was among women who were vaccinated at ages 12 to 13.
Between 2020 and 2024, researchers found zero cervical cancer deaths among women ages 20 to 24. Based on historical trends, about 23 deaths would have been expected if the vaccination program had never existed.
Researchers described the results as evidence that cervical cancer deaths in this age group have effectively been eliminated.
The human papillomavirus, or HPV, causes nearly all cervical cancer cases.
For years, scientists believed widespread vaccination could dramatically reduce cervical cancer. This study is among the clearest demonstrations that those predictions are becoming reality.
The findings also reinforce decades of evidence showing that preventing HPV infection before exposure dramatically reduces future cancer risk.
A separate 2026 evidence review conducted by the University of Minnesota’s Vaccine Integrity Project examined hundreds of studies worldwide and concluded that HPV vaccines reduce cervical cancer risk by as much as 80% when administered before age 16.
The review also found no credible evidence linking HPV vaccines to serious long-term health complications.
Why Latina Women Remain at Higher Risk
The England study did not examine race or ethnicity. However, U.S. data reveals a troubling reality.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Latina women experience the highest cervical cancer incidence rate of any major racial or ethnic group in the United States.
They are also among the most likely to die from the disease.
Experts say the disparity is not caused by biology.
Instead, it reflects longstanding barriers to healthcare access.
These include:
• Lower rates of health insurance coverage
• Delayed preventive care
• Language barriers
• Limited access to regular screenings
• Lack of awareness about HPV vaccination
• Concerns about healthcare access among immigrant families
Because cervical cancer often develops slowly, routine Pap tests and HPV screenings can detect problems years before cancer develops.
When women miss those screenings, cancers are often discovered later when treatment becomes more difficult.
California’s Opportunity
California has one of the nation’s largest Latino populations and one of the country’s strongest public health infrastructures.
Programs through schools, community clinics, county health departments, and federally qualified health centers have helped increase HPV vaccination rates among adolescents.
In fact, Hispanic adolescents already have some of the highest HPV vaccine initiation rates nationally.
The challenge now is ensuring completion of the vaccine series and increasing screening rates among adults, especially women who may have missed preventive care appointments during the pandemic.
The biggest lesson from this research is not simply that the vaccine works.
It is that cervical cancer is increasingly becoming a preventable disease.
For Latino families across California, that means conversations about HPV vaccination are no longer just about preventing an infection. They are about preventing cancer decades later.
Public health experts emphasize that the greatest protection comes from combining early vaccination with routine cervical cancer screening throughout adulthood.
The science is becoming increasingly clear: one of the deadliest cancers affecting women may soon become one of the most preventable.
