The Ministry of Health, Labor and Social Protection is asking the public’s opinion about its plans to introduce the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine into the 2019 National Immunization Calendar as a mandatory vaccine for girls.

The vaccine is a way to protect against multiple strains of the cancer-inducing virus. The MoH says that cervical cancer, caused by in 90% of the cases oncogenic HPV, is the third leading form of cancer among Moldovan women.

Almost every day a woman is diagnosed with cervical cancer in Moldova, and every 2-3 days a woman dies because of the disease.

Earlier this year the MoH announced it was buying 40,000 shots of the 4-valent vaccine Gardasil, manufactured by the American company Merck & Co., to continue the 2019 HPV immunization campaign among girls born in 2009.

The vaccination course consists of two shots spaced no more than 6 months apart. The Ministry said the type of vaccine purchased also protects men.