The drug maker Merck provided information according to which Gardasil vaccine may be the solution for women who suffer from cervical cancer.

Cervical cancer is known to be the most common type of tumor in women and the main cause of death in some countries.

A recent study conducted on 3,800 women aged 24 to 45 revealed that the vaccine prevented 91 percent of persistent infection, minor cervical abnormalities, and genital warts caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) compared with women who received a placebo.

The study divided the women in groups: the first group received 3 doses of Gardasil over a period of 6 months while the second group received placebo injections. Women who did not receive any kind of treatment formed the last group. Women were followed for nearly 20 months. At the end, four women vaccinated with Gardasil showed signs of infections compared with 41 women that did not receive the vaccine.

Dr Eliav Barr, who leads and funds the Merck HPV Vaccine program said on a telephone interview from Beijing: "This is the first efficacy study in this age population. The vaccine performed as we expected. It was highly effective," Reuters reports.

The vaccine is supposed to protect against HPV types 16 and 18, known to be the cause of cervical cancer in more than 70 percent cases. It also protects against HPV strains 6 and 11, which cause genital warts.

The study was presented at the 24th International Papillomavirus Conference in Beijing, China and the drug maker Merck will present these data to obtain U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval to market the vaccine to women through age 45 before the end of this year.

Merck said that vaccination for women before they are sexually active would be the most effective prevention against HPV. Richard Haupt, executive medical director for Merck’s global vaccines and infectious disease division said that there are data showing that older women can also benefit from receiving Gardasil, local sources reported.