Number of HPV Cases Drops Steeply Among Teenage Girls

March 23rd, 2016

Awake Goy

Vaccine prevents HPV infection and potentially resultant cancers.

The human papillomavirus, generally known as HPV, is the most common sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the U.S. A recent study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows a significant decrease in teenage girls infected with the virus.

According to the CDC, approximately 79 million Americans, most in their late teens and early 20s, are currently infected with HPV. Each year about 14 million new cases of HPV infection are reported. There are over 40 strains of HPV. Most are not too harmful, produce no symptoms, and go away within a few years; but some of those strains can cause cancer.

The CDC also reports that each year approximately 27,000 people are diagnosed with cancer caused by HPV. Annually, about 19,000 cancers caused by HPV occur in women and about 8,000 in men. Men can carry the infection without knowing it and infect others. Infected men are at risk for cancer of the anus and penis, and can also develop throat cancer between the ages of 40 and 60. In women, HPV can cause cancers of the cervix, vagina, and vulva.

There is a vaccination that aids the body’s immune system in developing antibodies to fight HPV. A recent student was undertaken to measure its effectiveness. Using data from federally conducted surveys, researchers sought to measure the proportion of females aged 14-59 years who were infected with the HPV during two segments of time: 2003 -2006, years immediately before the vaccine was available, and 2009 – 2012, years during which the HPV vaccine was available.

Results of the study showed the vaccine works well. For young women aged 14 to 19 years, the rate of HPV infection dropped 64%, from 11.5 % before the vaccine was available to 4.3% after it was available. For women aged 20 to 24 years, the rate dropped 34%, from 18.5% before availability of the vaccine to 12.1% after the vaccine’s availability.

HPV vaccination if recommended at age 11-12 for both boys and girls but a recent survey showed that only about half of all American girls and fewer boys receive the vaccine. HPV vaccination is also recommended for teens and young adults who have not been previously vaccinated.