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Although sometimes we here at Shine question certain studies (like you know, ones that say smart ladies can't have orgasms), this one is legitimate and very, very serious. The latest news is that HPV (or human papillomavirus) has now been linked to lung cancer, which is just one more organ in a long list of ones susceptible to cancer caused by this extremely common STD (it's primarily known to cause cervical cancer, but new findings also link it to penile, vulva, vaginal and anal cancers). HPV is so very common, in fact, that yet another well established study found that one in four teenage girls are infected with the disease, making it a substantial, life-threatening epidemic. According to the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention, 20 million (20 MILLION) Americans have HPV, and 6.2 million become infected each year.
The wonderful news is that it can now be prevented. Last year, the FDA approved the Merck vaccination Gardasil which is now widely available. Unfortunately some conservative groups and activists say that vaccinating their sons and daughters against the dangerous, cancer-causing disease is tantamount to making condoms accessible to teens and encourages promiscuity. This is not only ludicrous, it strikes me as very possibly insane.
As far as I'm concerned, this vaccine is a no-brainer and should be administered alongside traditional ones for measles, influenza and Hep B, among others. Many diseases have thankfully been eradicated in the United States (smallpox, polio) due to widespread vaccinations, and until HPV becomes less pervasive, there should be no question about whether or not we protect our kids from it.
While some of the vaccine's opponents claim that vaccinating children and teens gives them a license to have sex (WTF!?), physicians and advocates say concerns about HPV's association with sex shouldn't trump the health issue at hand. In the words of OB/GYN and professor Dr. Lauren F. Streicher, who calls such associations irrelevant: "Anyone opposed to the vaccine doesn't understand it, or has an agenda. The vaccine is grounded in solid science."
I have to agree with her. I understand that some parents want to discourage premarital sex, and that is another issue entirely, but wake up and smell the statistics: Turns out, millions and millions of teens are having sex anyway, despite their parents' protests. More to the point, what parent wouldn't do whatever it takes to protect their child from harm?
And for the record, I do think teens should have access to condoms. Especially with all that HPV going around!!! Oh wait, a condom cannot totally prevent HPV. But a vaccine can.
See also: "Is chivalry dead?"; College Confessional: A case for Gardasil"; "Get lippy for HPV & AIDS awareness"; "Journey through having cervical cancer"; "The doctor is in: Do I tell him I have HPV?"
