Ottawa recommends vaccinating males for HPV
Jan 25, 2012 – 4:10 PM ET
Jessica Rinaldi / Reuters files
Gardasil, a Human Papillomavirus vaccine.
By Robert Hiltz
OTTAWA — The federal government is recommending men and boys be vaccinated against the human papilloma virus (HPV) — adding to recommendations already in place that young girls and women be vaccinated.
Earlier this month, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization released a report recommending the extension of the use of the HPV vaccine to men.
HPV is a sexually transmitted infection that causes genital warts as well as anal cancer in men and the majority of cervical cancers in women. A study released in February’s New England Journal of Medicine showed the HPV vaccine also was effective in preventing genital warts in males.
The NACI recommends males between the ages of nine and 26 be vaccinated with Gardasil.
Health Canada approved Gardasil for female vaccination in 2006, paving the way for some provinces — Quebec, Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia — to begin vaccination programs for girls in grades 4 through 9.
Dr. Franziska Baltzer, head of adolescent medicine at the Montreal Children’s Hospital and spokeswoman for the Canadian Association of Adolescent Health said the CAAH was supportive of the expansion of HPV vaccinations.
“Both genders contribute to the spread of HPV and develop diseases as a result of HPV infection. To eliminate those diseases, we need to vaccinate males as well as females,” Baltzer said in a news release.
Health Canada first approved the HPV vaccine for use in males in February 2010. However, none of the provinces has implemented a vaccination program similar to the one for females.
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