Tag Archives: HPV

Young, HIV-Postive MSM: Cover Your Butt Against HPV

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Cover Your Butt with Gardasil

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that gay and bisexual men (men who have sex with other men) are about 17 times more likely to develop anal cancer than men who only have sex with women. HIV-positive males who have sex with males are at increased risk of developing anal cancer and/or genital warts compared to the general population. However, those who receive the Gardasil vaccine could be protected.

The Gardasil vaccine has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in HIV-negative young men and women to prevent transmission of the human papillomavirus (HPV), the virus that can lead to genital warts or cervical and anal cancer. And in October 2011, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted to recommend HPV vaccinations for boys and men ages 11 to 21.

Scientists and doctors have reason to believe that Gardasil will have the same levels of protection among those who are HIV-positive, but research is limited at this time.

Join the Gardasil Study

If you are interested in participating in this study or would like more information, please contact Emily George at 617.927.6246. Participants will be compensated for their time.

To increase the amount of knowledge surrounding the protective effects of Gardasil, Fenway has opened a new research study which is providing the Gardasil vaccine to HIV-infected males who have sex with males and are between the ages of 12 and 26 years old.  During the course of the study, participants will receive a great picture of their overall health through regular lab draws, anal pap smears, STI testing and counseling, and receipt of the Gardasil vaccine—all of which are normally recommended by doctors for young people.

This study is open to those who meet the eligibility criteria:

  • MSM
  • 12-26 years old
  • HIV-positive
  • Have never received the Gardasil vaccine

And regardless of eligibility, if you’re a Boston-area young person and would like to know more about getting vaccinated against HPV, providers at the Borum are happy to answer your questions. If you’d like to get tested for HPV and other sexually transmitted infections, call Fenway Health at 617.267.0159 to discuss your options with a counselor or visit this website for help finding a testing site close to you. 

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CDC’s Immunization Committee recommends HPV vaccine for boys and young men

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Each year six million Americans get human papilloma virus (HPV) through unprotected sexual activity, making HPV the most common sexually transmitted infection. The most frequent result of HPV is genital warts, but HPV causes more severe diseases as well. Each year 30,000 Americans get a cancer caused by HPV. These include cervical and anal cancer, as well as head and neck cancers. Gay and bisexual men, and people living with HIV, are at greatest risk for anal cancer. HPV may also increase women’s risk for heart disease and stroke.

Gardasil HPV vaccine

Gardasil HPV vaccine

HPV and the cancers it causes are preventable, but until now insurers would not pay for HPV vaccine for boys and young men. Thanks to a ruling by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) October 25, 2011, this will soon change. ACIP voted 12-0 with one abstention to recommend HPV vaccinations for boys and men ages 11 to 21. In 2009 ACIP authorized, but did not recommend, HPV vaccine for 9- to 26-year-old boys and men. This is important because vaccinations of girls and young women, recommended by the CDC since 2006, have proceeded slowly due in part to opposition from socially conservative politicians and parents. Controversy over Texas Governor Rick Perry’s plan to require HPV vaccinations for girls and young women erupted in a Republican presidential debate in September 2011, with Congresswoman Michelle Bachman and former Senator Rick Santorum slamming Perry for the move. Bachman inaccurately called HPV vaccine “potentially dangerous.” She later claimed (again, inaccurately) that it caused mental retardation. The CDC estimates that only 32% of girls 13 to 17 have been vaccinated with HPV. Vaccinating boys and young men will protect them and young women against HPV, and reduce HPV-associated cancers later in life. The CDC’s move is a victory for science and public health, and a rejection of fear-mongering and political demagoguery.

Sean Cahill, PhD, is Director of Health Policy Research at The Fenway Institute. 

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