The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine “works astonishingly well. It really prevents the kind of infections that cause cancer,” commented Ruanne Barnabas, MBChB, MSc, DPhil, MD, PhD, in an interview with The ASCO Post. “Other viral infections are difficult to protect against, or there might be changes in the viral strain or new variants. However, we don’t see that with HPV. It is a very stable virus, and the vaccine really works incredibly well.” Dr. Barnabas is Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, and a faculty member at Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Barnabas expressed disappointment over the fact that there is not as much enthusiasm for the HPV vaccine as she had hoped, especially with a vaccine that prevents nearly 100% of cases of cervical cancer. “Maybe we have not done as good a job of communicating that fundamental point, because about 100% use of this vaccine will prevent about 100% of cervical cancers,” she said.

Parental Pushback

Parents’ concerns about the safety of the vaccine may have hampered earlier efforts to vaccinate children and younger teens. In addition, some parents may have resisted having their children vaccinated because it might imply their children were sexually active or encourage them to be so.

“We have not made as much progress as we could possibly make with changing the conversation around the HPV vaccine. It is a vaccine that prevents cancer, and thinking about it as a sexually transmitted disease [STD] is somewhat of a distraction,” Dr. Barnabas noted. “Furthermore, genital warts are also prevented by the same vaccine. So, there is certainly that benefit as well.”

‘Time to Refresh Our Approach’

“Even decreasing the risk of having an abnormal screening test and the anxiety and the stress of having to go through treatment and another test should be enough to encourage vaccination,” according to Dr. Barnabas. “This vaccine is something people deserve to have. Frankly, it is time to refresh our approach to HPV vaccination. It is something all individuals should have access to, to protect their own health and the health of their partners.” 

DISCLOSURE: Dr. Barnabas has received funding from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, and has served as a paid consultant on a trial data and monitoring committee for Gilead Sciences.