HPV Vaccines Encouraged for Boys, Study Suggests

A new Canadian study suggests that vaccinating boys against the human papillomavirus (HPV) can help reduce health care costs in the long run. A mathematical modelling produced an estimate of the effects when an HPV vaccine is given to help prevent oropharyngeal cancers in boys.

The study, headed by Dr. Lillian Su, an oncologist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto, looked at 192,000 Canadian boys aged 12 years old back in 2012. The statistical modelling the researchers used would help predict the decrease of future cancers in those participants who have received the vaccine.

“The interpretation is that oropharyngeal (throat) cancer will become the most common (HPV) related cancer … surpassing cervical cancer,” said Siu. In the study published on Monday in the Journal of Cancer, Siu and other co-authors have made a conclusion that the vaccine can reduce costs between $8 million and $28 million in the participants’ lifetime compared to those who did not receive the vaccine.

Despite the conclusion made in the study, Siu is not advocating free HPV vaccine for boys until further research is conducted. “I think I’m naive to think a theoretical model will change government policy, but I think raising awareness is important,” she said.

The study has its own limitations as well. While the vaccine has been effective against cervical and genital cancers, no large study has been conducted to prove that the vaccine is effective in oral cancers. "The standard is to have clear evidence of efficacy from a prospective clinical trial," said Dr. Maura Gillison, a medical professor at The Ohio State University who also discovered that HPV can cause head and neck cancers.

HPV vaccine is under the provincial medicare plans only. However, Nova Scotia has announced last week that the budget permits HPV vaccine in Grade 7 boys over the next school year.

To contact the writer, email: wendylemeric@gmail.com