About 80 per cent of girls in Atlantic Canada eligible to receive a vaccine meant to protect them from cervical cancer have taken advantage of the program, health officials say.

The provinces of P.E.I., Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador are three of the four provinces in the country offering publicly funded immunization programs for the Gardasil vaccine.

The vaccine protects against certain strains of human papillomavirus, which is sexually transmitted and can be associated with cervical cancer in later life.

The rates of girls taking the vaccine are roughly the same in the three provinces.

In Ontario, the other province where the vaccine is offered, the rate is much lower. The Ministry of Health there reports 53 per cent are getting the shots.

It's recommended that girls get the vaccine before they become sexually active, but some health experts have questioned its effectiveness.

New Brunswick has announced that it will begin a school-based HPV vaccination program beginning in the fall.