HSE Launches Laura Brennan HPV Vaccine Catch-Up Programme to Prevent Cancer

HSE School Teams Target Unvaccinated Students

HSE vaccination teams have begun visiting post-primary schools nationwide to offer free HPV jabs to students in second, third, fourth, and fifth year who did not receive the vaccine during their first year of secondary school, as detailed by the HSE. Citizens Information reports that the current phase also extends to students in sixth year. Home-educated young people born between September 1, 2006, and August 31, 2009, can also access the free vaccine. Children aged 15 or under require consent from a parent or guardian. Preliminary data from the initial phase of the school catch-up initiative shows that more than 2,000 young people who previously missed the vaccine have now received it, according to the HSE.

This catch-up programme gives young people who missed out another opportunity to get protected.

Continuing Laura Brennan Legacy and Cancer Prevention Goals

The catch-up initiative carries forward the advocacy of the late Laura Brennan, who campaigned publicly during the final months of her life to encourage young people to get the HPV vaccine. Laura Brennan passed away from cervical cancer at the age of 26. Her mother, Bernie Brennan, emphasized the importance of the rollout.

As I always say, prevention is better than cure and prevention is definitely better than no cure. If you have a boy or girl in first year, make sure they get their HPV vaccine. Don’t miss the opportunity to save them from HPV-related cancers when they grow up.

Bernie Brennan Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD highlighted that the advocacy of Laura Brennan and her parents, Larry and Bernadette, has saved lives and increased confidence in vaccination, alongside the work of the Irish Cancer Society. The broader national objective is to eliminate cervical cancer in Ireland by 2040.

International Evidence on Vaccine Efficacy

The push to increase uptake coincides with new findings published in The Lancet, which demonstrated that cervical cancer deaths among young women in England fell dramatically following the introduction of the HPV vaccine programme. Specifically, no cervical cancer deaths were recorded among women aged 20 to 24 between 2020 and 2024. The HPV vaccine protects against cervical, head and neck tumours, and cancers of the penis and anus, as well as genital warts. The HSE encourages parents and guardians to review the provided information, discuss vaccination openly with young people, and utilize the catch-up window before it concludes in August 2026.