MADISON- The UW Carbone Cancer Center is among 69 of the nation’s top cancer centers in issuing a statement with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) urging increased human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination to prevent cancer.
“HPV infections and the cancer caused by them continue to be a public-health threat because of critically low vaccination rates in the U.S.,” said Dr. Howard Bailey, director of the Carbone Cancer Center.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HPV infections are responsible for about 27,000 new cancer diagnoses each year in the U.S. Yet fewer than 40 percent of girls and just more than 21 percent of boys receive the recommended three doses. The percentages fall short of the goal of 80 percent by the end of this decade as set by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service’s Healthy People 2020 mission.
The CDC recommends that boys and girls receive three doses at ages 11 or 12 years. The HPV vaccine series can be started as early as age 9 and should be completed by the 13th birthday. The HPV vaccine is more effective the earlier it is given. But it is also recommended for young women until age 26 and young men until age 21.
“We encourage all health-care providers to be advocates for cancer prevention by making strong recommendations for childhood HPV vaccination,” said Bailey.
The call to action was a major recommendation from a summit last November at MD Anderson Cancer Center with experts from the NCI, CDC, American Cancer Centers and NCI-designated cancer centers.
“This initiative is directly aligned with the desire of the President, Vice President and all Americans to work constructively together to eradicate cancer,” said Dr. Ernest Hawk, vice president and division head of Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
“The HPV vaccine is about cancer prevention. It’s our best defense to stop HPV infection in our youth and prevent HPV-related cancers,” said Bailey, who is currently writing, on behalf of the world’s largest cancer health-professional organization, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, a position statement advocating for increased rates of HPV vaccination worldwide.