In exiting news , a recent study in Kenya, has revealed that a commonly used HIV drug, Lopinavir, kills off the Human Papilloma Virus that is responsible for cervical, anal and some oropharyngeal cancers. The drug was not used in an oral formulation, but rather a pessary inserted vaginally.
The study looked at Kenyan women infected with HPV who had high grade disease, the most serious and potentially cancerous form . After treatment, a high proportion of these women cleared the disease. This is a world first and if it the results can be replicated it would be an amazing breakthrough.

Although there are preventative vaccines for HPV, the majority of people who already have the virus, and are at risk from developing cancer, have limited options in terms of treatment.

Further good news was that the treatment was only given for a short period of two weeks, yet despite this, 83 percent of the women with high grade cervical lesions , returned to normal . The overall response rate between the women with high and low grade lesions were and impressive 91%.

Although further studies will be needed to confirm this and also to find the optimal dosing, there have been previous studies showing that Lopinavir selectively kills off HPV. This is very promising and we might be looking at a potential cure for people suffering with HPV.