New Study Emphasizes The Importance Of Men And Boys Getting The HPV Vaccine
The HPV vaccine is widely known, and has been historically framed, as protection against cervical cancer in women. Now, according to a large new study published in JAMA Oncology, young men and boys who received the human papilloma virus, HPV, vaccine had around half the risk of developing related cancers compared to those who were unvaccinated.
The study wants parents of both young men and women to do the research to learn more about what HPV is in general, the cancers it’s linked to, and the benefits of the vaccine.
CNN wellness expert Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and adjunct associate professor at George Washington University who was previously Baltimore’s health commissioner, recently spoke to the publication regarding this new study.
“HPV is an extremely common virus transmitted through intimate skin-to-skin contact. The vast majority of those who are sexually active will be exposed to it at some point in their lives.”
“This applies to both men and women. According to the National Cancer Institute, nearly all sexually active people are infected with HPV within months to a few years of starting sexual activity,” Dr. Wen explained to CNN.
“About half of these infections are with a high-risk HPV type that increases the likelihood of developing cancers. Most infections go away on their own as the immune system clears them, but some persist and can cause cellular changes that can become cancerous over time.”
Wen explained that HPV is linked to a range of cancers in both men and women. In women, it’s most commonly linked to cervical cancer, but it can also cause other cancers in the vagina and vulva. In men, HPV is linked to cancers of the penis, anus, head, and neck.
“Over 90% of anal cancer is caused by HPV. Oropharyngeal cancer, also called throat cancer, is highly associated with HPV as well, with about 70% attributed to HPV. And more than 60% of penile cancer is caused by HPV,” Wen pointed out.
The study that Wen is citing utilized a global database of over 615,000 men aged 9 to 26 who received the nonvalent HPV vaccine and over 2 million who did not. The researchers analyzed about half a million individuals from each group that were concluded to be comparable.
“They found that men who were vaccinated had a significantly lower risk of developing HPV-related cancers. Overall, vaccination was associated with about a 46% reduction in risk, meaning those who received the vaccine had roughly half the risk compared with those who were unvaccinated,” Wen said.
“The benefit was seen across different groups studied. Those vaccinated between ages 9 and 14 had about a 42% lower risk, while those vaccinated between 15 and 26 had about a 50% lower risk.”
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends routine vaccination of preteens at 11 or 12-years-old. The HPV vaccine can be given at the same time as other vaccines.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends routine HPV vaccination for all adolescents starting between 9 and 12-years-old. Getting your children vaccinated during their earlier years “focuses on the goal to vaccinate before any exposure to HPV occurs.
According to the AAP, there is no known downside to starting HPV vaccinations early. The immune response is strong at younger ages, and there has not been evidence of significant waning protection,” Wen cited.
To parents who may be skeptical, Wen emphasized the importance of speaking with their medical provider, but also that the main component of this vaccine is its ability to prevent cancer later in life.
“This vaccine is about preventing cancer. It protects against infections that can lead to serious disease many years later. We now have strong evidence that it benefits everyone. The safety profile of the vaccine is well-established, and the effectiveness in preventing HPV-related disease is very high. As a mom of two children, choosing vaccination is an opportunity to reduce the risk of serious illness for our children in the future.”
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.