The way forward
The World Needs Vaccines to Protect Against STIs
Every day, more than 1 million new and curable sexually transmitted infections (STIs) occur worldwide.
These infections can increase risk for HIV and certain cancers and can have other serious consequences, including infertility and severe complications for pregnancy and newborns.
Vaccines currently exist for only two common STIs – HPV and hepatitis B. The development of vaccines, and other biomedical interventions such as diagnostics and pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis, could invigorate efforts to address the global problem of STIs.
Vaccines
A global roadmap from the World Health Organization, US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and partners lays out next steps for accelerating STI vaccine development. These steps include: assessing needs; defining preferred product characteristics; developing, evaluating and licensing vaccines; and considerations for ensuring equitable access during program rollout.
Other STI Prevention Strategies
Researchers continue to explore prevention strategies like vaccines and preexposure prophylaxis to prevent STIs, but greater R&D investment is needed. Recent clinical trials suggest that use of the oral antibiotic doxycycline, among gay, bisexual, and other MSM, can reduce STIs when taken after condomless sex (doxyPEP). But little data is available on doxyPEP among women, and research to fill this gap is essential. There is also concern and ongoing research to evaluate its benefit over the potential of antimicrobial resistance. See slides, resources and watch a recording of AVAC’s webinar, Doxycycline for STI Prevention Evidence and Current Research, exploring these issues.
Click the chart above to enlarge. PDF version also available.
Chlamydia
The world’s most commonly reported bacterial STI, chlamydia is a major cause of infertility
Gonorrhea
Antimicrobial resistance threatens to make gonorrhea untreatable, with significant sexual and reproductive health consequences
Hepatitis B
The vaccine against hepatitis B is a global success story, with a whole generation of young people now protected from this leading cause of liver cancer
Genital Herpes
Genital herpes is an incurable viral infection that can have painful symptoms and may triple risk for HIV
HPV
Safe and effective vaccines to prevent HPV are available and could eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem, if access is scaled up globally
HPV
Mgen is regarded as an emerging threat to sexual and reproductive health given the rapid appearance of multidrug resistant strains.
Syphilis
Syphilis is the second leading cause of stillbirth globally and can cause brain damage, blindness and paralysis in adults if left untreated
Trichomoniasis
The world’s most common curable STI, trichomoniasis, usually goes undiagnosed and untreated