Researchers from the University of British Columbia study the effects of two-dose HPV vaccines and find it can be just as protective as three.

Cervical cancer, while no longer the leading cause of death by cancer for women in the U.S. according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is still a huge problem in areas across the globe without access to quality vaccinations and care.

Forty years ago, cervical cancer—a disease in which cancerous cells spread by the human papilloma virus (HPV) grow in the tissue of the cervix—was the number-one cause of cancer death in women in the U.S. Due to Pap smears and proper care, the incidence rate has declined, according to the CDC. Today, girls and young women are often given an HPV vaccine to protect them against cervical cancer. In other parts of the world, however, they aren’t so lucky.

Led by Dr. Simon Dobson, researchers from the University of British Columbia are looking for a way to reduce the cost of HPV vaccination treatment, simply by cutting back on the number of vaccines needed for protection. Currently, three vaccinations are normally administered. In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Dobson and his team studied the efficacy of just two doses and found that results could be just as protective.

“We have established that the immunogenicity of a 2-dose schedule at 0 and 6 months in girls 9 through 13 years of age is statistically noninferior for HPV-16 and HPV-18 to the immunogenicity in women receiving 3 doses, assessed 1 month after the final dose,” the study states.

Who wouldn’t says yes to one less trip to the doctor and one less shot?