Effectiveness of the Human Papillomavirus Vaccine in Extended Age Groups: A Real-World Analysis Based on the Korean HPV Cohort Study.

Background/objectives: This study evaluated the real-world effectiveness of prophylactic Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination in Korean women aged over 26 years, focusing on its impact on persistent HPV infection and disease progression.

Methods: This multicenter prospective study analyzed data from the Korea HPV Cohort (2010-2021). After applying exclusion criteria, the final analytical cohort included 1,231 women aged ≥ 27 years with cytologic findings of atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance/low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions and HPV infection. Propensity score matching was used to compare vaccinated ( = 340) and unvaccinated ( = 891) participants. After matching, 273 vaccinated and 273 unvaccinated individuals were included in the final analysis. The primary outcomes were persistent HPV infection and progression to biopsy-confirmed cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or worse (CIN2+). Logistic and Cox regression models were employed, with additional age-stratified analyses.

Results: Among women aged 27-39 years, vaccination was significantly associated with a 54% reduction in the odds of persistent HPV infection (odds ratio = 0.46; 95% CI: 0.22-0.96; = 0.040). In the full cohort, vaccinated participants had a 62% lower risk of progression to CIN2+ compared with unvaccinated participants (hazard ratio = 0.38; 95% CI: 0.18-0.81; = 0.011). Body mass index had a notable impact on HPV persistence in HPV 16/18 genotype groups.

Conclusions: HPV vaccination effectively reduced persistent infection and progression to CIN2+ in Korean women, particularly those vaccinated before age 40. These findings support the age-extended HPV vaccination policies in South Korea.