Experts say boys should have HPV vaccine too

Published September 6 2012 inSexual Health
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Professor Stanley from the University of Cambridge says that boys as well as girls should be given the HPV vaccine to help protect them from HPV and related cancers (tongue, head, neck and tonsils) and discusses this in the journal Nature.  The World Health Organisation has linked HPV to more than 5% of the world’s cancers.

 

Professor Stanley said: “Obviously cervical cancer is the big one but in Europe and the United States and Australia, places that have got cervical cancer screening programmes, cervical cancer is very well controlled. But the other cancers, cancers of the anus and increasingly the tonsil and tongue, there is no screening for them and no way of detecting them until they are proper cancers and they are more common in men than in women.”

In the UK, only girls are vaccinated, but this means that only 50% of the population have had the vaccine, and it would help to reduce incidences if both boys and girls are vaccinated before they become sexually active as it means there will be less HPV in the population.

Better2Know offers the HPV vaccine to both men and women at some of our clinics.  Please call us for more details.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mike has been delivering world class Sexually Transmitted Infections testing services to Better2Know patients around the world for over ten years. He has written extensively on the subject, including numerous blogs for Better2Know which are designed to demystify the complex intricacies of sexual health testing. Mike wants to help his readers understand the risks they take in their daily sexual lives and provide the information they need when choosing an STI or STD test in a clear, concise and understandable way. Mike is particularly interested in writing about viral STIs like HIV and Hepatitis, as these infections can have a devastating impact on people’s lives if they are not diagnosed quickly. Only through being well informed can you best care for your health, and Mike is passionate about sharing his knowledge and experience to help you and all his readers lead a happier, healthier life.