Parents now have a safe and effective way to protect their daughters against a virus that causes cervical cancer.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on the Immunization Practices (ACIP) – which advises the CDC on vaccine policy – recently voted unanimously to recommend that all 11- and 12-year-old girls be immunized to prevent infection with human papillomavirus (HPV). Nine- and 10-year-old girls may be immunized, and catch-up immunization is recommended for all 13- to 26-year-old females who have not previously received the vaccination series.
Although many strains of HPV are harmless, some can cause cervical, vulvar and vaginal cancers and genital warts and are the primary cause of cervical cancer in the United States. More than 10,000 U.S. women are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year, and nearly 4,000 die from the disease.
The vaccine – Gardasil, made by Merck – must be given in three doses over six months to be effective.
“Gardasil is a great tool to help support preventive care among adolescents,” says Dr. Amy Middleman, an adolescent medicine specialist at Texas Children’s Hospital and associate professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine. “The development of vaccines like this for adolescents is important because it helps reduce morbidity and brings them in so we can address other issues they might be facing.”
Middleman serves as a liaison to ACIP and is the only adolescent medicine specialist among the working group that developed the recommendations for the vaccine.
She encourages parents to ask their daughter’s health care provider about the vaccine and believes there’s no reason for a preteen, teenager or young adult woman not to be immunized against HPV.
For parents worried that offering Gardasil to preteen and teenage girls may seem like advocating sexual activity, Middleman says she doubts that will be the case.
“In most instances, it will just be a standard part of the care we provide,” she explains. “But we always have to think about the vulnerable members of the adolescent population who will engage in risky behaviors. They don’t always understand the risks, and it’s important that we protect them in every way we can.”
Plus, ensuring adolescents are immunized against against HPV – or any other vaccine-preventable disease – is all part of caring for children’s health, she adds.
“A parent’s job is to protect children and optimize their health so that they grow into happy, healthy adults,” says Middleman. “This vaccine is an important part of an overall strategy to do just that.”
From the CDC: 
