Cervical Cancer:
Not Embarrassing “Female Trouble,” But Preventable Disease!
You take your healthy 13-year-old daughter to the doctor’s office for an August checkup. This doctor has taken care of your family, including your daughter and her 10-year-old sister, for two years and you trust her. You’ve always made sure both girls got all their required vaccinations, and now the doctor asks if you want the new vaccine for your older daughter––and maybe the younger one as well––to protect them against human papillomavirus (HPV), the virus that causes cervical cancer. HPV is a sexually transmitted infection, and you are having a hard time thinking about your 13-year-old being sexually active, much less the 10-year-old. What should you do?
Dr. Nancy says you should set aside your anxieties about sexual activity in these young girls and focus on this fact: the vaccine is most effective in girls who are not yet sexually active. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection, with 6 million more Americans becoming infected each year. It is usually impossible to know from whom or when one acquired HPV because most people don’t know they have it.
Each year, HPV infection develops into cervical cancer in nearly 10,000 women, and nearly 4,000 die of it. The US Food and Drug administration has approved the Gardasil HPV vaccine for females between the ages of 9 and 26. The vaccine protects against four types of HPV that cause 70% of cervical cancers and 90% of genital warts.
It’s important to educate yourself and talk openly with your doctor AND your children about HPV virus and its risks. Parents who believe in the benefits of vaccines are the most likely to accept HPV vaccination for their children. Parents who themselves have viral infections such as genital warts are also more likely to see the benefits. Other important influences are a doctor’s recommendation, school requirements, and cultural and social factors including attitudes toward sexuality.
Unfortunately, many doctors are uncomfortable in discussing sexually transmitted infections with parents and adolescent patients, and they may hesitate to recommend vaccines for young patients such as 13-year olds. Parents can help communication with their doctors by writing out their questions in advance and trying to focus on the facts.
HPV vaccine is a new product, so your doctor may not have a great deal of information. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a fact sheet http://www.cdc.gov/std/hpv/STDFact-HPV-vaccine.htm to help you make your decision.
Although genital HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection, most cases clear up without causing disease. Although genital warts are embarrassing, they are not medically harmful. It is also true that regular PAP tests and follow up can prevent most, but not all, cases of cervical cancer. Additionally, having only one sexual partner in your life, who has also had no other sexual partner, is the only sure way to avoid HPV infection.
Parents could regard HPV vaccination as a preventive measure that will help protect their children during adolescence and help ensure their children have long and healthy lives as adults. The anticipated cost of the vaccine, administered in three shots over six months, is about $360. For girls who are uninsured, Medicaid-eligible, American Indian or Alaska Native, the federal Vaccines for Children (VFC) [http://www.cdc.gov/nip/vfc/Default.htm] program may help.
Read More
|
