The
American Cancer Society estimates that in 2008, 11,070
women were diagnosed with cervical cancer in the U.S.
There
is a vaccine for cervical genital HPV which was introduced
in 2006 to protect woman from contracting the virus. It
protects women against HPV subtypes 6 and 11, which cause
90% of genital warts, and 16 and 18, which together cause
70% of cervical cancers in women. It has been considered
safe by the CDC and has been approved by the FDA.
The vaccine
is recommended for girls who are 12 or 13 and it can be
given to women as old as 26 who have not been diagnosed
with the disease or who have not previously been given
the vaccine. Research has shown that the vaccine is 95-100%
effective at protecting women from contracting HPV, but
it is not as effective for women who are already sexually
active, as they may have already been infected with the
virus.
As the vaccine
also targets cervical cancer the vaccine is commonly known
as the cervical cancer vaccine rather than the genital
warts vaccine. Even with the genital warts vaccine women
will still need to have pap smears regularly to check
for cervical cancer, as 30% of cervical cancers are not
covered by the vaccine.
The
vaccine has started to be tested on men and has been approved
for men in some areas in the UK.
Some experts recommend yearly anal Pap tests for gay and
bisexual men and for HIV-positive persons because anal
cancer is more common in these populations.
There
is currently no vaccine to prevent HPV-related diseases
in men. Studies are being done to find out if the vaccine
is also safe in males, and if it can protect them against
HPV and other related conditions. There is also no approved
screening test to find early signs of penile or anal cancer.
Many experts recommend yearly anal Pap tests for bisexual
man, gay men and for HIV-positive persons because anal
cancer is more common in these people.
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