The HPV Vaccine: Why Should You Get it?

The HPV Vaccine: Why Should You Get it?

The HPV Vaccine: Why Should You Get it?

In recent years, the medical community has developed vaccines that are helped to preventHPV infection in some cases. As is true with any vaccine, these are not 100% effective, however they have been shown to be effective the majority of the time.

Specifically, there are currently two vaccines on the market for protection against HPV, and more are under development. There are over 250 different strains of HPV virus that have been identified to date; these vaccines protect against particular strains that are associated with certain conditions.

The most common vaccine is Gardasil. This was developed to prevent the types of HPV virus that causes cervical cancer in women. This is given to women ages 9 to 26. It is administered in three injections over a six-month period. It can also be given to young men who are sexually active to prevent the strains of HPV that cause genital warts, but it is rarely used for that purpose since most cases of genital warts caused by HPV are not life-threatening.

Gardasil targets four specific strains of the HPV virus: types 6, 11, 16 and 18. Types 6 and 11 cause about 90% of all cases of genital warts. So vaccination against these strains will prevent most cases of genital warts in males and females. Types 16 and 18 of the HPV virus are believed to cause from 70-75% of cervical cancer cases. So vaccination against these types can prevent many cases of cervical cancer in women. Additionally, it can prevent about 70% of vaginal cancer cases and about 50% of vulvular cancer cases in women.

A lesser known vaccine called Cervarix, has been found to be useful in preventing types 16 and 18, and most cervical cancers. This vaccine is not used in males.

It is important to remember that some cases although not the majority of cervical, vaginal, vulvular, penile and anal cancers are caused by agents other than the HPV virus. So it is possible to receive the vaccine against HPV as a young woman and still develop non-HPV related cervical cancer. So the HPV vaccines are a way to prevent many of the cases, much of the time they are not a 100% cure-all.

We know that sexually-transmitted types of HPV can cause cervical cancer. We also know that HPV infection is on the rise, as is the incidence of cervical cancer in women. Common sense would seem to suggest that preventing HPV infection in young women can lower the risk of cervical cancer. For this reason, many physicians are talking to their young female patients about the HPV vaccines.

If you are sexually active, under the age of 26 and you think that extra protection against the types ofHPV virus that can result in gynecological cancers might be a good idea, speak further about it to your doctor. You and your physician together can determine whether the HPV vaccine makes sense for you.

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