, but vaccinating boys will not only help protect their partners who may be susceptible to contracting the virus via sexual transmission, but also reduce the circulation of the virus in general. This in term will help prevent penile, anal and genital cancers, including some cancers that affect the head and neck. It's good news.
One potential argument is that HPV vaccines and associated immunisation programmes are massively expensive. According to published journal by, female only programmes alone cost approximately £77m a year in the UK. Offering this programme to boys will likely double this cost. And for full protection, boys who have been given parental consent to have the jab will need two doses: the first dose in year 8, and the second follow-up dose six months to two years later.
However, the chief executive of Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust, Robert Music, remarked that the move to vaccinate boys was 'a huge leap forward' and added that 'HPV does not discriminate, it can affect everyone, yet there are still many harmful myths and stigmas surrounding it.
Matt Hancock, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, recently controversially tweeted about the news. He said 'We’re rolling out the highly effective HPV vaccine to boys across the country to protect more girls from cervical cancer.' Twitter users were quick to comment that Hancock has failed to address the fact that the jab will also save men from developing some types of cancer, and so it's beneficial for both sexes, instead of just girls.
One user replied to his tweet by saying 'just as importantly, it protects the boys from penile, anal, and oral cancers,' whilst another commented 'great vaccination program but terrible tweet! It protects boys from other cancers caused by HPV too. Shame there’s no catch up program for boys as there is for girls.
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Source: The Telegraph - 🏆 41. / 63 Read more »