HPV vaccine for boys?

Since 2008, a vaccine against the human papilloma virus (HPV) has been routinely offered to girls age 12 and 13 as part of the NHS childhood vaccination programme. However, it has been criticised that it is not offered routinely for boys. Currently, if parents want their sons vaccinated, they have to pay £450.

There are more the 100 different types of HPV, and the virus is easily spread by sexual activity. It can cause the common STI genital warts, cervical cancer, as well as cancer of the vagina, anus, penis and mouth. The vaccine Garsidil protects against two types of HPV, which cause more the 70% of cervical cancer cases in the UK.

At the moment, there are regional variations of girls being vaccinated, with 96% in some areas, compared to just 62% in others. Researchers at GSK found that the national uptake of the vaccine is 86%. Experts have said that if 96% of girls across the UK had the vaccine, then 198 cervical cancer cases and 87 deaths could be prevented every year. With 14% of girls not being vaccinated, herd immunity cannot be achieved, which puts many girls and boys at risk.

As boys are not offered the vaccine, this puts them at risk when having sex with the 14% who have not been vaccinated in the UK. Additionally, men are at risk if they are sexually active with men, or with those from countries where the vaccine is not available. More than 2,000 cases of cancer in men are caused by HPV each year. Extending the vaccination programme to boys would outweigh the costs of treating HPV-related diseases.

Scientific experts are meeting to discuss whether boys should also be offered the vaccination against HPV. However, they are investigating whether to extend to it boys, or men who have sex with men, or both. This is absurd as vaccinating only gay men seems extremely unfair to heterosexual men and also women who were over the age to be routinely offered the HPV vaccination. The fairest solution would be to introduce the HPV vaccination to adolescent boys.