YOUNG women are paying £150 on the high street for a vaccine which is given to schoolgirls to help prevent cervical cancer.

A number of pharmacies now offer the HPV (human Papilloma virus) vaccination, for children from nine onwards up to the age of 44.

A vaccine, Gardasil, is currently offered to all schoolgirls aged 12 to 13 as part of the NHS childhood vaccination programme.

Both Superdrug and Boots said sales of the vaccine were "doing well" and that uptake in some stores had increased in recent months and was highest in the 21-25 age bracket.

The NHS vaccine protects against four strains of HPV, while one version available on the high street protects against nine strains.

A spokeswoman for Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust said it was difficult to say how effective the vaccine would be for someone who is already sexually active, as they may already have the HPV virus.

Cancer charities have said they welcome the move by pharmacies to target people outwith the NHS programme, including boys.

Some health experts have called for the NHS vaccine programme to be extended to teenage boys because of the link between HPV and certain types of penile, anal and throat cancer, as well as genital warts.

The Scottish Government said current vaccination programmes were in line with recommendations supported by "expert independent advice."

Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women aged 35 and under.

Two genotypes of the HPV virus, 16 and 18, are responsible for around 80 per cent of cervical cancers in Scotland.

HPV is a very common infection that four out of five sexually active adults will come into contact with in their lives. However, in some cases the virus damages the cells’ DNA and causes cells to start dividing and growing out of control, which can then lead to cancer.

A spokeswoman for Superdrug said: “Currently the NHS offers ‘Gardasil’, which protects against 4 strains of HPV. “However the HPV vaccination within the service offered by Superdrug is Gardasil 9 which protects against 9 strains of HPV.

“Superdrug also offers the vaccination service to boys as well as girls, whereas right now the NHS only offers the vaccination to girls.

"We felt it was important to offer the vaccination service to both genders, while groups such as HPV Action are lobbying for both genders to be vaccinated under the NHS programme.”

A Scottish Government spokesman said:“All vaccination programmes offered by NHS Scotland are done so following recommendations supported by expert independent advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).”

Research by Health Protection Scotland found that reported cases of the human papillomavirus (HPV) have fallen 90% since the vaccination campaign began in 2008.

Experts hope it will lead to a significant drop in future cervical cancer cases.