Is Your Child Ready for the HPV Vaccine?
- The Gardasil-9 vaccine is approved for children and adults ages 9 to 45.
- The vaccine protects against human papillomavirus (HPV), the leading cause of cervical cancer in the United States.
- It may prevent 90% of all cervical cancers.
- Getting vaccinated in childhood can protect kids from getting infected later in life.
Since COVID-19 came on the scene several months ago, the public health spotlight has been on vaccines that protect against this deadly virus. As exciting as new vaccine development for the coronavirus might be, we can’t forget about all the existing vaccines that shield us from other deadly diseases. One of those critical vaccines protects young people against human papillomavirus (HPV), the virus that causes cervical cancer.
“HPV vaccination is the single greatest anti-cancer move we can make for our children today.”
“HPV is present in 96% of all cervical cancers and is the leading cause of cervical cancer in the United States,” Dr. Bobbie J. Rimel, gynecologic oncologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA, tells SurvivorNet.
Related: New Cervical Cancer Screening Guidelines Recommend HPV & Pap Testing Now Start at Age 25
The HPV vaccine protects against not only cervical cancer, but also vaginal and vulvar cancers in women, and genital warts and anal cancer in both men and women.
At What Age Should Vaccinations Happen?
The original FDA approval of the Gardasil-9 HPV vaccine included young people ages 9 to 26, but it has since been expanded to include men and women ages 27 to 45. When given in two doses, spaced 6 to 12 months apart, the vaccine can prevent more than 90% of HPV- related cancers.
Kids as young as 9 can get Gardisil, and the earlier the better, says Dr. Rimel. “The immune system of children is very robust and their ability to create a long, lifelong immunity based on a vaccination is greater than in the adult body.”
Related: Anti-Vaxxers Spread Misinformation, Thwarting Cancer Prevention Made Possible by HPV Vaccine
Still, contemplating a vaccine that protects against a sexually transmitted infection might give parents pause. “A lot of parents wonder about vaccinating their children for HPV, because they recognize that HPV transmission is primarily through sexual contact,” Dr. Rimel says.
For any parent who is on the fence, she says the virus can pass from person to person through any type of sexual contact, not just intercourse. And once someone has been infected with HPV, it can’t be reversed.
Rimel is so convinced about the benefits of the HPV vaccine that she’s had both of her children vaccinated. “The best thing I can do to protect them is provide them with vaccination that prevents them from picking up an HPV that’s going to cause them harm in the future,” she says. “HPV vaccination is the single greatest anti-cancer move we can make for our children today.”
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
Dr. Bobbie J. Rimel is an OB/GYN and Oncologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Read More
Is Your Child Ready for the HPV Vaccine?
- The Gardasil-9 vaccine is approved for children and adults ages 9 to 45.
- The vaccine protects against human papillomavirus (HPV), the leading cause of cervical cancer in the United States.
- It may prevent 90% of all cervical cancers.
- Getting vaccinated in childhood can protect kids from getting infected later in life.
Since
COVID-19 came on the scene several months ago, the public health spotlight has been on vaccines that protect against this deadly virus. As exciting as new vaccine development for the coronavirus might be, we can’t forget about all the existing vaccines that shield us from other deadly diseases. One of those critical vaccines protects young people against human papillomavirus (HPV), the
virus that causes cervical cancer.
“HPV vaccination is the single greatest anti-cancer move we can make for our children today.”
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“HPV is present in 96% of all cervical cancers and is the leading cause of cervical cancer in the United States,”
Dr. Bobbie J. Rimel, gynecologic oncologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, CA, tells
SurvivorNet.
Related: New Cervical Cancer Screening Guidelines Recommend HPV & Pap Testing Now Start at Age 25
The HPV vaccine protects against not only cervical cancer, but also vaginal and vulvar cancers in women, and genital warts and anal cancer in both men and women.
At What Age Should Vaccinations Happen?
The original FDA approval of the Gardasil-9 HPV vaccine included young people ages 9 to 26, but it has since been expanded to include men and women ages 27 to 45. When given in two doses, spaced 6 to 12 months apart, the vaccine can prevent more than 90% of HPV- related cancers.
Kids as young as 9 can get Gardisil, and the earlier the better, says Dr. Rimel. “The immune system of children is very robust and their ability to create a long, lifelong immunity based on a vaccination is greater than in the adult body.”
Related: Anti-Vaxxers Spread Misinformation, Thwarting Cancer Prevention Made Possible by HPV Vaccine
Still, contemplating a vaccine that protects against a sexually transmitted infection might give parents pause. “A lot of parents wonder about vaccinating their children for HPV, because they recognize that HPV transmission is primarily through sexual contact,” Dr. Rimel says.
For any parent who is on the fence, she says the virus can pass from person to person through any type of sexual contact, not just intercourse. And once someone has been infected with HPV, it can’t be reversed.
Rimel is so convinced about the benefits of the HPV vaccine that she’s had both of her children vaccinated. “The best thing I can do to protect them is provide them with vaccination that prevents them from picking up an HPV that’s going to cause them harm in the future,” she says. “HPV vaccination is the single greatest anti-cancer move we can make for our children today.”
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
Dr. Bobbie J. Rimel is an OB/GYN and Oncologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Read More
