Human Papilloma Virus vaccines have been around for nearly a decade, helping prevent different types of cancers in children. The number of parents, however, who refuse to have their kids vaccinated continues to increase at an alarming rate.
Human Papilloma Virus vaccines, or HPV vaccines, have helped prevent HPV caused cancers such as cervical, tongue, anal, and throat cancer from developing in young children. Despite the efforts of local health communities, though, parents are still ignoring vaccination for their young ones.
Even with the benefits of the said vaccine, a recent survey from the Pediatrics Journal has shown that the number of parents over the years who have refused vaccination has increased, due to their primary belief that immunization from HPV is unnecessary. This is in fact, a misconception, as abstinence from HPV vaccinations has been one of the leading causes for HPV triggered cancers in the US, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
According to the CDC, HPV vaccination is strongly recommended for young children aged 11-12. Regardless of this, a low percentage of only 28 percent is shown for boys aged 13-17 who have been fully vaccinated. Only 50 percent have received one-time vaccination, in the vaccine's three-dose course.
The Human Papilloma Virus is the single most sexually transmitted virus in the United States, according to the CDC, and since it is only carried by humans, the problem can be eradicated if only people will get vaccinated, especially at an early age. Ian Frazer, the chief executive of the Translational Research Institute, says that if only people will get vaccinated, we would be able to fully eliminate the virus, since humans are the only hosts and can only be transmitted by humans as well.
Currently, Rhode Island has made it mandatory for children in the seventh grade to receive the HPV vaccinations, in an attempt to minimize the number of children at risk of getting the diseases caused by the virus.
