China administered its first dose of a human papillomavirus vaccine for men in its central Hunan province on Thursday afternoon, according to the provincial center for disease control and prevention.

據(jù)湖南省疾病預(yù)防控制中心消息，1月9日下午，中國(guó)首針男性人乳頭瘤病毒（HPV）疫苗已在湖南開(kāi)打。

The recipient in Changsha, the capital of Hunan province, became the first man on the Chinese mainland to receive the HPV vaccine, after US pharmaceutical giant Merck announced its quadrivalent HPV vaccine Gardasil had been approved for additional indications by the National Medical Products Administration.

湖南省會(huì)長(zhǎng)沙的這位接種者即全國(guó)首位男性HPV疫苗接種者(境內(nèi)獲批)。此前，美國(guó)制藥巨頭默沙東公司就已宣布其四價(jià)HPV疫苗佳達(dá)修已獲國(guó)家藥品監(jiān)督管理局的上市批準(zhǔn)。

After being approved for use in women on the Chinese mainland, the HPV vaccine is now available for males aged 9 to 26 to prevent diseases caused by HPV types 16 and 18, such as anal cancer, as well as genital warts caused by HPV types 6 and 11.

在HPV疫苗獲批適用于女性之后，本次獲批的HPV疫苗可適用于9歲至26歲男性預(yù)防因HPV16、18引起的肛門(mén)癌，HPV6和11引起的生殖器疣(尖銳濕疣)。

It is the first and only HPV vaccine authorized for use in men in China, according to the company.

默沙東公司表示，這也是中國(guó)境內(nèi)首個(gè)且目前唯一獲批、可適用于男性的HPV疫苗。

"With this expanded approval, we look forward to helping protect this new population of Chinese males from certain HPV-related cancers and diseases," said Joseph Romanelli, president of Human Health International at Merck, expressing optimism about tapping into this new market.

默沙東人類(lèi)健康國(guó)際部總裁羅萬(wàn)里（Joseph Romanelli）表示：“隨著此次獲批擴(kuò)大，我們期待幫助保護(hù)中國(guó)男性群體免受與HPV相關(guān)的癌癥和疾病的侵害。”他對(duì)于開(kāi)拓這一新市場(chǎng)充滿樂(lè)觀。

HPV is regarded as one of the world's major public health issues, as it not only causes cervical cancer in women but can also lead to various malignant tumors in men, said professor Chen Xi, who works with the provincial center for disease control and prevention.

湖南省疾病預(yù)防控制中心陳曦教授介紹，HPV感染是全球重要的公共衛(wèi)生問(wèn)題，因?yàn)樗粌H會(huì)導(dǎo)致女性宮頸癌，還可能引發(fā)多種男性惡性腫瘤。

According to the National Health Commission, vaccinating men is also important for HPV prevention. The target population for the HPV vaccine is primarily women in China. While vaccination of women provides some cross-protection for men, relying solely on this is insufficient.

國(guó)家衛(wèi)健委提示，男性接種HPV疫苗對(duì)于預(yù)防HPV感染也很重要。在中國(guó)，HPV疫苗的主要接種人群是女性。雖然女性接種疫苗能為男性提供一定的交叉保護(hù)，但僅依靠這一點(diǎn)是不夠的。

China has exerted more efforts to expand its opening-up in the medical field, drawing more global pharmaceutical giants like Merck to tap into the promising market. In September 2024, China announced that it would add exemptions to import tariffs and value-added tax for eligible drugs and medical devices in a special medical pilot zone in Hainan province before 2025.

中國(guó)加大力度擴(kuò)大醫(yī)療領(lǐng)域的對(duì)外開(kāi)放，吸引了更多像默沙東這樣的全球制藥巨頭來(lái)開(kāi)拓前景廣闊的市場(chǎng)。2024年9月，中國(guó)宣布在2025年前，將對(duì)海南一個(gè)特殊醫(yī)療試點(diǎn)區(qū)內(nèi)符合條件的藥品和醫(yī)療器械免征進(jìn)口關(guān)稅及增值稅。