Elevate Your Health Colorado HPV--to vaccinate or not to vaccinate?

During this busy time of year with school physicals, I have been getting a lot of questions about the HPV vaccine. 

First, here are the basics about this virus and the vaccines:  HPV stand for Human Papilloma Virus, and different subtypes of this virus are the main causes of cervical cancer, and of genital warts.  A amazing statistic that every parent should know about this virus--50% of all adults who are sexually active will be infected with this virus at some point in their lives.  So it is very common, and can affect anyone, not only people who have many sexual partners.

The vaccine  has been recommended to be given to girls at age 11, and can be used between the ages of 9 and 26.  One brand, Gardasil, protects against both groups--the 2 subtypes that cause most cervical cancer,and the 2 subtypes that cause most genital warts.  Another brand, Cervarix, only protects against the 2 subtypes that cause most cervical cancers.

There are several good questions that parents bring up about the vaccine:

1. Why so young? Does an 11 year old really need a vaccine for a sexually transmitted infection?
2. It is so new--is it safe?  What about side effects? 
3. Why don't boys get the vaccine?

So why so young?  

First, the vaccine has been studied and been shown to be effective in girls as young as 11.  Second, the idea is that if we are able to vaccinate girls before there is any chance of them becoming sexually active, we know we can fully protect them from the virus types that the vaccine protects against. 

From the conversations I have with parents in the office, I know it can be really difficult to think about an 11 year old and an infection that is transmitted sexually.  It turns out that even some pediatricians and family doctors find the topic a little uncomfortable, even thought they know how important the vaccine is, according to this article in Medscape.  

I think it is important to remember that this is about preventing cancer, and I really do think it is important that girls receive this vaccine, even at age 11. No one in the medical community is suggesting that these young girls should become sexually active, just that we should protect them before they could be exposed.  It is also important for parents to talk with their kids about sex, and their beliefs about what is right and wrong.  Many 11 year olds aren't ready for that conversation, and I think that is ok--they can still get the vaccine, and parents can have the conversations at a later time that is more appropriate.

I also know that some parents need time to process this, so I for those parents who just are not ready, I always reassure them that we can do the vaccine at the next checkup instead. 

Safety: 

Gardasil was approved for use in mid 2006, so it is not as new as people might think.  More importantly, almost 30 million doses have been given, so we know a lot about it, and it really is safe.  Many girls do say it stings more than some of the other vaccines they receive.  There have also been reports that girls who get this vaccine may faint a little more often than when they get other vaccines--it is not clear that there really is a difference between the HPV and other vaccines, but the Center for Disease Control do recommend waiting in the office for about 15 minutes after getting the vaccine, so if a girl does faint, she doesn't fall and get injured.  You can read a lot more about the HPV vaccine on the CDC website.

Boys:

There was a recent piece on NPR about boys and HPV.  Gardasil does help prevent genital warts in boys.  There is a lot of debate about whether vaccinating boys will reduce cervical cancer in girls enough to make it worth the expense, so the Centers for Disease Control approved it for boys as an option.  So boys can get the vaccine, but many people aren't giving it to the routinely, since they can't get cervical cancer anyway.

I know this has been a bit long, but I hope it helps to answer some of the questions you might have been having about the HPV vaccine and your kids.