New Study Confirms HPV Vaccine Helps Men and Women

When it comes to HPV or the human papillomavirus, we tend to think that women are the main ones affected. We could not be more wrong – in fact, HPV infections have been linked to throat, anal canal, and anal cancers in males and females alike. Luckily, researchers behind a recent study found evidence suggesting the vaccine effectively protects men and women from over 90% of HPV-related cancers.

What is HPV?

The human papillomavirus is a viral infection that commonly causes skin or mucous membrane growths (warts). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), almost everyone will be infected by some type of HPV in their lifetime; most infections resolve on their own within a year or two. There are more than 100 varieties of human papillomavirus; most do not cause cancer, but some do. Infections cause approximately 36,000 cases of cancer in men and women each year.

In addition to cases of throat, anal, and anal canal cancers that HPV causes in both men and women, infections also cause sex-specific cancers. In females, it causes cervical, vaginal, and vulvar cancers, and in males, it causes penis cancer. Here are some statistics on these from the CDC:

• Nearly 200,000 women are diagnosed with cervical pre-cancer each year
• 11,100 women are diagnosed with human papillomavirus-caused cervical cancer annually
• Approximately 4,000 women lose their lives from HPV-caused cervical cancer every year
• Every four out of ten HPV-related cancers occur in men
• More than 15,000 men are diagnosed with HPV-caused cancers annually
• While men and women are both affected by HPV-caused throat cancer, men are affected at a higher rate

What Did the Researchers Find?

The researchers found that vaccination may reduce the incidence rate of HPV-related cancers by as much as 36% in females and 56% in males. According to the study’s authors, their findings are particularly significant for males, who are less likely to receive the vaccine but benefit from a higher reduction rate in HPV-related cancers from it than females do. Despite this, it is just as critical for females to be vaccinated against life-threatening cancer-causing infections with the HPV vaccine. Here is some more data that researchers found:

• They compared 1.7 million individuals who had been HPV-vaccinated with a similarly sized and age-matched group who had not been vaccinated. They discovered there were 3.4 cases of HPV-related cancer per 100,000 vaccinated individuals; there was more than double that (7.5 per 100,000) among individuals in the unvaccinated group
• There has been a rise in HPV-related cancers in males, most notably males between the ages of 40 and 60 years old

CDC Vaccination Recommendations

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) first approved the human papillomavirus vaccine in 2006. Today’s vaccine offers much more comprehensive protections to recipients; it has the potential to protect against over 90% of cancers that are attributable to the virus.

The CDC recommends children receive two doses of the vaccine starting at ages 11 and 12, though it can be started as early as nine. Despite its safety and efficacy, fewer than 40% of young Americans had received at least one of the two recommended doses of the vaccine in 2022. Another obstacle in vaccinations is that our society so often thinks of HPV as a female-centric infection, so young boys are less likely to be vaccinated than young girls. It is worthy to note that the vaccine is most effective when introduced before individuals contract an infection, so it is important to follow the CDC’s scheduling recommendations.

To learn more about the CDC’s recommendations on HPV vaccination, you can visit: The CDC. You can also speak with your child’s pediatrician if you have questions or concerns about vaccination status.

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