The CDC recommends vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) routinely for adolescents aged 11 through adults aged 26 year olds. It also recommends vaccination for adults ages 27-45 based on a shared decision-making conversation.
HPV vaccines prevent certain types of cancers caused by HPV, including:
- cervical, vaginal, and vulvar cancers in women
- penile cancer in men
- anal cancers in both men and women
- cancers of tonsils, base of tongue, and back of throat (oropharyngeal cancer) in both men and women
Despite the recommendations and improvements in vaccination rates, only 54% of females and 34% of males aged 18 to 21 years old reported receiving at least one dose of the HPV vaccine at any age in 2018 (Chen et al., 2021).
As providers of care to adults, PCPs have an opportunity to improve these rates!
What are the barriers to HPV vaccination?
In a recent article entitled “Barriers to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among young adults, aged 18–35,” published in Preventive Medicine Reports, Muthukrishnan et al. examined barriers to HPV vaccination among individuals aged 18–35 years and assessed likelihood of vaccination.
The three most reported barriers reported by patients who reported positive intention of HPV vaccination, i.e., those likely to get the HPV vaccine, were:
- Provider recommendation: “My doctor never recommended the HPV vaccine to me” – 64.2% of respondents
- Health insurance: “I don’t think my health insurance will pay for the HPV vaccine” – 45.0% of respondents
- Expensive: “The HPV vaccine is too expensive” – 34.4% of respondents
Other barriers that all respondents (having negative or positive intent to get HPV vaccine) reported in free text responses included age limitations and being low risk due to marital status.
The good news
HPV vaccines are affordable. The Affordable Care Act requires most insurance providers to cover the HPV vaccine as it is a vaccination recommended by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). Most patients should be able to receive the vaccine with no cost-sharing.
References
Centers for Disease Control. HPV Vaccination Recommendations. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/hpv/hcp/recommendations.html. accessed Oct 17 2022.
Chen MM, Mott N, Clark SJ, Harper DM, Shuman AG, Prince MEP, Dossett LA. HPV Vaccination Among Young Adults in the US. JAMA. 2021 Apr 27;325(16):1673-1674. doi: 10.1001/jama.2021.0725. PMID: 33904878; PMCID: PMC8080227.
Muthukrishnan M, Loux T, Shacham E, Tiro JA, Arnold LD. Barriers to human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination among young adults, aged 18-35. Prev Med Rep. 2022 Aug 8;29:101942. doi: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2022.101942. PMID: 36161130; PMCID: PMC9502683.