Who Needs
HPV Prevention?
The US Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends HPV vaccination for anyone between 9-45 years old.
Any person who is sexually active—or will become sexually active at some point in their lives—should be protected against HPV infections.1
Women
All women are at risk of cervical cancer, which is almost always caused by HPV.2 85% of all women will get HPV, regardless of age, relationship status, or number of sexual partners.3
Apart from a lifetime of abstinence, vaccination and regular screening is an effective way to help protect women against HPV.4
Men
90% of all men will get HPV, which may cause anal cancer, oral and throat cancers, as well as genital warts.3 At any age, HPV infection rate in men remains high. Men are also more likely to be infected repeatedly compared to women.5,6
As there is no approved HPV screening for men, and most men don’t experience symptoms, they often only discover their infection when diseases occur. In the meantime, they may unknowingly transmit the virus to their partners.7
Therefore, prevention through vaccination remains the better option.
Children
Nowadays, more children are becoming sexually active at an earlier age.8 Therefore, the sooner they are protected, the better it will be. In fact, children can be vaccinated as early as 9 years old and it’s more effective if they are protected before HPV exposure.4
Any boy or girl who is vaccinated before becoming sexually active will be protected from the most high-risk HPV types that may cause cancer later in life.4
LGBTQ+
Both men and women can spread HPV to either men or women. Men who have sex with men are 2-5 times more likely to get HPV and more than 20 times more likely to get anal cancer than men who have sex with women.10
Transgender men who still have a uterus will also be at risk of cervical cancer. Likewise, some transgender women who have undergone sex reassignment surgery may be at risk of cervical cancer as well.12,13
No matter what your gender identity or sexual orientation may be, HPV vaccination can reduce your risk of HPV-related cancers.
Learn more about the prevalence of HPV in the LGBTQ+ community.