Omnicom Health Hong Kong, in partnership with the HPV Prevention Alliance and the Karen Leung Foundation, has launched “Catch-up Now” a campaign designed to raise awareness and drive registrations for Hong Kong’s free HPV Vaccination Catch-up Program.
The campaign is designed to address a significantly low uptake among the estimated 70,600 young females born between 2004 and 2008 who remain eligible for the final phase of Hong Kong’s one-off free HPV vaccination program. According to the LegCo Panel on Health Services, less than 3% of eligible recipients had registered through a Women’s Wellness Satellite government clinic as of August last year. With the registration deadline set for 31 July, eligible young females who fail to sign up risk losing access to free vaccination.
The creative concept of the campaign draws an elegant cultural parallel: Cantonese opera preserves traditions for future generations; HPV vaccination preserves futures themselves. Yet while opera’s villains are always obvious, HPV operates invisibly, making it a threat that young women often don’t see coming.
The campaign film brings this comparison into sharp focus through a conversation at a Cantonese opera exhibition between Gen Z YouTuber Hiu Yan, Professor Hextan Ngan (HPV Prevention Alliance convener), and Professor Karen Chan (trusted medical advisor). Their dialogue bridges cultural preservation with cancer prevention, helping young females understand that protecting their health is an act of safeguarding their own futures. As an ovarian cancer fighter herself, Hiu Yan speaks from lived experience, creating space for real and personal conversations about why protecting your future matters. Her voice encourages young women to take active steps in preventing HPV and its related cancers.
The campaign is already showing promising results. Since launching a month ago, appointments at the program’s vaccination sites have been operating near capacity, with booking availability remaining extremely limited throughout June and July.
Katharina Reimer, CEO of the Karen Leung Foundation commented, “The Karen Leung Foundation is proud to stand alongside the HPV Prevention Alliance in supporting Hong Kong’s HPV Vaccination Catch-Up Program. Protecting girls and young women from cervical cancer is at the heart of everything we do, and this progress is only possible through a collective effort. We are deeply grateful to our community of partners, friends, and generous donors whose support makes it possible to expand access, raise awareness, and drive lasting change together.”
Sam Wong, Managing Director of Omnicom Health Hong Kong commented, “The challenge with this campaign wasn’t simply telling people to get vaccinated, but helping them understand why it matters and empowering them to act before the opportunity disappears. It’s been incredibly rewarding working with our trusted partners at Karen Leung Foundation and the HPV Prevention Alliance to make sure we created something meaningful and we’ve been overwhelmed by the positive response so far.”
The campaign spans digital channels with targeted video placements, amplified through the HPV Prevention Alliance, Karen Leung Foundation, and influencer Hiu Yan’s social platforms to reach both young females and their parents to address awareness gaps across both audiences. The sign-up deadline is July 31st, so people are being encouraged to register now given limited capacity.
