Unfounded infertility claims mar Pakistan's HPV vaccine drive
- Published on October 24, 2025 at 10:52
- 2 min read
- By Rimal FARRUKH, AFP Pakistan
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Misinformation has plagued Pakistan's first rollout of a jab to protect girls against cervical cancer, which kills thousands of women in the country each year. A widely shared online clip shows a conservative politician inaccurately claiming the shot is "making our daughters infertile". Experts say there is no evidence linking such a side effect to the vaccine, which has been continuously monitored for safety since it was licensed in 2006.
"They are making our daughters infertile. The Sindh government is forcefully injecting innocent girls in schools, colleges and universities," says Pakistani politician Rashid Mehmood Soomro in a clip shared on TikTok on September 18, 2025.
The vaccine is being administered under the guise of "breast cancer prevention", adds the secretary general of the Sindh province chapter of the conservative religious party Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam.
Soomro's speech also circulated on YouTube while similar claims linking the HPV vaccine to infertility were shared elsewhere on TikTok and on X.
They spread as Pakistan launched the country's first HPV inoculation campaign in the capital Islamabad and in provinces including Sindh -- with phased rollouts planned throughout the country until 2027 (archived link).
In 95 percent of cases, cervical cancer is caused by persistent infection with Human Papillomavirus (HPV) –- a virus that spreads through sexual activity, including non-penetrative sex, that affects almost everyone in their lifetime.
Available data suggest more than 3,000 women die from cervical cancer in Pakistan each year, although the figure is likely under-reported (archived link).
The drive aimed to administer jabs to 11 million girls -- but by the time it ended only around half the intended doses were administered.
AFP has reported cases of parents slamming their doors on healthcare workers and schools closing for several days to snub inoculators over fears of the vaccine's side effects (archived link).
There is no evidence linking the HPV shot to infertility, contrary to the false posts.
Long safety profile
According to a World Health Organization paper in December 2022, over 500 million doses have been distributed since the HPV vaccine's licensure in 2006 (archived link). The vaccine has been proven "highly efficacious" in preventing infection with the virus.
"Post-licensure surveillance has detected no serious safety issues to date except rare reports of anaphylaxis," the global health agency said. It has not responded to AFP's request for comment.
Continuous monitoring has not identified any safety concerns, the paper added. "Data from all sources continue to be reassuring regarding the safety profile of HPV vaccines currently in global use."
Studies conducted among women in the United States and in Denmark found no links between infertility and the vaccine (archived here and here).
Dr Yasmine Challoub, senior manager for immunisation at UNICEF in Pakistan, told AFP on October 22 the HPV vaccine "can actually protect fertility" by preventing cervical cancer.
"Treatments for advanced cancer -- like surgery or radiation -- can affect reproductive health," Challoub explained.
Dr Fareeha Irfan, an independent public health specialist, said the spread of misinformation complicates the already challenging vaccine uptake situation in Pakistan.
"In a country like Pakistan, where religious and traditional concerns are embedded in vaccine hesitancy, it is critical to tailor programs which offer transparent and candid information before pushing for any new immunisation," she said on October 16.
Pockets of Pakistan's border regions remain resistant to inoculation as a result of misinformation and conspiracy theories (archived link).
A fake vaccination campaign organised by the US Central Intelligence Agency in 2011 to track Osama bin Laden compounded the mistrust.
The country remains one of only two with Afghanistan where vaccine-preventable polio is endemic.
AFP has debunked more false claims about vaccines here.
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