7 Reasons Every Young Person Should Get Vaccinated Against HPV

HPV (human papillomavirus) is a group of more than 150 viruses that spread through intimate skin-to-skin contact and cause certain types of cancer. HPV-related cancers may include cancer of the throat, cervix, vulva, vagina, penis, or anus.

Unfortunately, besides cervical cancer, there are no recommended screenings for the other cancers caused by HPV. It is very important to have The Talk with your parent or guardian about HPV vaccination to help prevent infection.

1. HPV is extremely common! About one in four individuals in the US are currently infected with HPV.
2. HPV vaccination is extremely effective! HPV vaccination provides close to 100% protection against cervical precancers and genital warts.
3. A lot of people don’t realize they have HPV. Because it often has no symptoms, anyone can get the virus and pass it on without even knowing it.
4. Screenings aren’t 100% accurate! There are no routine screening tests for HPV-associated diseases other than cervical cancer.
5. HPV vaccination is preventing cancer-causing infections. Since HPV vaccination was introduced in the US more than 10 years ago, HPV infections have dropped significantly.
6. Vaccination is extremely safe! Vaccines approved in the US go through years of extensive testing before being approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and FDA continue to monitor HPV vaccines once they are licensed to make sure they are safe and effective.
7. HPV vaccination is available and covered by most insurance companies. And the Vaccines for Children (VFC) program helps families of eligible children who might not otherwise have access to vaccines.

All of the information above was sourced from the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

DoSomething.org is the largest not-for-profit exclusively for young people and social change. Our digital platform is activating 6 million young people (and counting!) to create offline impact in every US area code and in 131 countries.