HPV shots aid cancer prevention for all, research shows

Published on Friday, November 1, 2024

By: Danny Barrett Jr., dlbarrett@umc.edu

Reasons are growing for parents to have sons as well as daughters vaccinated against the more dangerous forms of the human papilloma virus (HPV), cancer prevention specialists say.

Oropharyngeal cancers – those of the back of the throat, including the base of the tongue and tonsils – have outpaced HPV-related cervical cancer rates, according to an update posted in September by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Separate findings published earlier this year showed the shot reduced risk among males for head and neck cancers. It all points to continuing efforts to make parents as aware of the HPV shots as other immunizations for older children, according to UMMC specialists who are part of a statewide task force aimed at having kids vaccinated for HPV by age 13.

“The HPV vaccination is about cancer prevention,” said Dr. Sarah M. Jones, associate professor in the Department of Pediatrics and chair of the provider group on the task force, which includes the American Cancer Society and collaborators across the health care and private sectors. “Completing the HPV vaccine series before 13 years of age can prevent more than 90 percent of HPV-related cancer.”

More than 200 types of HPV exist. Some of them cause only common warts, but about 12 are considered high risks for cancers of the oropharynx, which involve the sexually transmitted infection of the virus to reproductive organ tissue. The CDC says children can get the vaccine starting at 9 years of age, with a stronger recommendation by 11.

Effectiveness of the HPV shot goes down with age. If a person starts the series before they’re 15, only two vaccines are needed, instead of three, Jones said.

Quality improvement efforts at Batson Kids Clinic, Flowood Family Medicine and Lakeland Medical have shown results this year. “We have gone from having zero patients 9 and 10 years old vaccinated to a rate of 35 percent vaccinated in 2023,” Jones said.

The first HPV vaccine was approved in 2006 for girls and women aged 9 to 26 and in 2009 for boys and men in that same age group. Gardasil 9, the most recent version, was FDA-approved in the United States in 2018 for use in children and adults up to 45 years old.

“I strongly encourage it,” said Dr. Carolann Risley, associate professor of nursing and member of the UMMC Cancer Center and Research Institute, of the HPV shot. Risley has contributed to research on racial disparities in cervical cancer and also chairs the statewide HPV Roundtable systems change committee and the UMMC HPV Elimination task force. “We know the cancer prevention benefits of HPV vaccination and that it’s safe and effective. However, parents can be confused by disinformation about it and vaccination rates are too low.”

Statistics released earlier this year showed the diagnosis of cervical cancer among women in the U.S. between 30 and 44 years of age rose almost 2 percent a year from 2012 to 2019.

Screening and follow-ups with specialists remain critically important, Risley said.

“We’re still seeing cervical cancer increasing in our older population as a function of the vaccine not being around when they were younger,” Risley said. “Many people older than 65 stop screening too early. HPV is a contagious cancer-causing virus, but early vaccination and/or screening is how we can help prevent it from happening or eliminate most cases.”

For more information or to make appointments at UMMC related to the HPV vaccine or to be screened, contact:

• Children’s Primary Care, call 601-815-2005 or visit here
• Women’s Health, call 888-815-2005 or visit here
• Grants Ferry – UMMC, call 601-815-0600
• Lakeland Medical – UMMC, call 888-815-2005
• Flowood Family Medicine, call 601-815-5700

Some county health departments also have HPV vaccine access for all ages and genders, Jones said.

The above article appears in CONSULT, UMMC’s monthly e-newsletter sharing news about cutting-edge clinical and health science education advances and innovative biomedical research at the Medical Center and giving you tips and suggestions on how you and the people you love can live a healthier life. Click here and enter your email address to receive CONSULT free of charge. You may cancel at any time.