Vasiliki Hadjirafael
Robotic and laparoscopic surgeon
Specialised in endometriosis
HPV VACCINE
NOW WE CAN PROTECT BOYS FROM THE VIRUS!
DONATION OF THE HPV VACCINE FOR BOYS APPROVED
Good news for the boys of our country as the Ministry of Health has included in the national vaccination programme the vaccination of boys aged 9 to 18 years old with the HPV vaccine. This means that there will be insurance coverage and free provision of the vaccine for boys of this age, just as there is for girls.
The HPV vaccine was first developed to help prevent cervical cancer in women. The medical community now knows that the vaccine can help prevent HPV-related cancers in men too.
HPV viruses cause a variety of lesions, benign and malignant, in the genitals, anus and oropharynx. Over 80% of sexually active people are infected with some type of HPV. The presence of the virus does not necessarily mean that the disease is present. There are over 150 types of HPV of which only 15 can cause cancer. In most cases of anal and oropharyngeal cancer, a dangerous strain of HPV is found.
All women have their annual Pap test and if they have an HPV infection it will show up on it. But men don’t do any screening to see if they are affected. This makes them more difficult to detect. Treating these cancers can be more difficult because they are not detected early. But the HPV vaccine can help prevent them.
What is the vaccine HPV and how does it protect?
The HPV vaccine is a vaccine that contains proteins from the envelope of the human papillomavirus (HPV) and protects by preventing infection with certain types of HPV.
It provides protection against 90% of cases of cervical cancer, genital warts and 85% of precancerous lesions of the proctogenital area and oropharynx associated with HPV.
Why is preventive vaccination important for both women and men?
Both sexes can carry the HPV virus and transmit it without even knowing it. Systematic vaccination against HPV, especially at ages before sexual intercourse has begun, can lead to the elimination of HPV-related cancers.Men and women who have had the HPV vaccine are protected against acute warts, oropharyngeal and anal cancers in HPV-related cases. In addition, women are protected against cervical cancer.
