DT News - UK - BDHF calls for HPV vaccination in boys to fight oral cancer

Dental Tribune International

Tue. 29 October 2013

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RUGBY – Although the number of cancers linked to the human papillomavirus (HPV) has increased in recent years, especially among men, HPV vaccination is only offered to teenage girls as part of a government childhood vaccination programme in the UK. Last month, a survey among about 2,000 UK participants found that the majority of people would support vaccination for boys.

The survey was conducted on behalf of the British Dental Health Foundation (BDHF) in September. Among others, it showed that three times as many people would support giving the vaccination to boys as those opposed to it.

Prof. Margaret Stanley, OBE, a researcher at the University of Cambridge, therefore advocates for immediate HPV vaccination for males. She said, “The burden of HPV-associated cancers is now almost the same in men as in women. It is not fair ethically or socially responsible to have a public health policy that leaves half of the population vulnerable to infection.”

In addition, the survey revealed a considerable lack of knowledge about the virus. According to the investigators, 21 per cent of surveyed men believed that HPV can be transmitted like a common cold.

In order to raise awareness of the risks and better educate the public about oral cancer, the BDHF will be launching its Mouth Cancer Action Month campaign on 1 November. The campaign will focus on HPV-related oral cancer in particular, as experts predict that HPV will supersede tobacco use as the main risk factor for this specific type of cancer in the next ten years, announced Dr Nigel Carter, OBE.

According to the latest figures published by the BDHF, 7,698 new cases of mouth cancer were diagnosed in the UK in 2011, with 6,000 in England alone. Almost 2,500 patients died of the disease that same year. One in five cases of oral cancer are predicted to be due to HPV.

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