Women Ages 30, Older Should Receive HPV Test; Girls Ages 11, 12 Should Receive Vaccine, American Medical Women's Association Says

Main Category: Cervical Cancer / HPV Vaccine
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 28 Mar 2007 - 0:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

Women ages 30 and older in the U.S. should receive an advanced human papillomavirus test in addition to a Pap test, and girls ages 11 and 12 should be vaccinated against the virus, according to guidelines announced Friday by the American Medical Women's Association at its annual North American Congress of Women in Medicine, United Press International reports (United Press International, 3/23). Among women not already infected with the vaccine HPV types, Merck's HPV vaccine Gardasil in clinical trials has been shown to be 100% effective in preventing infection with strains 16 and 18, which together cause about 70% of cervical cancer cases, and about 99% effective in preventing HPV strains 6 and 11, which together with strains 16 and 18 cause about 90% of genital wart cases. Gardasil also protects against vaginal and vulvar cancers, two other gynecological cancers that are linked to HPV, according to a study presented in Atlanta at a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. FDA in July 2006 approved Gardasil for sale and marketing to girls and women ages nine to 26, and CDC last week adopted the recommendations of its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to routinely give Gardasil to girls and women ages 11 to 26 (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/23). In addition to recommending girls ages 11 and 12 receive an HPV vaccine, the AMWA recommended "catch-up" vaccinations for girls (United Press International, 3/23). AMWA President Susan Ivey said the group also is advocating for insurance companies to cover the HPV vaccine and the HPV diagnostic test (Shelton, Orlando Sentinel, 3/23). FDA in March 2003 approved Digene's DNA Pap test -- which combines the traditional Pap test with a DNA test for 13 strains of HPV -- as a primary screening tool for cervical cancer for women ages 30 and older. Digene's test is 99% accurate at identifying changes in cervical cells, compared with an 80% accuracy rate for the Pap test (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/7). "The landscape of cervical cancer prevention is changing," Ivey said, adding, "We encourage clinicians to offer these new technologies, women to ask for them and insurers to cover them" (United Press International, 3/23).

"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

• Additional
• References
• Citations