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Print: Is there a vaccine for HPV?
There is a vaccine that can prevent 4 different types of HPV in young women. This vaccine targets the types of HPV that cause up to 70% of all cases of cervical cancer and about 90% of all cases of genital warts.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that girls between the ages of 11 and 12 receive the vaccine, as it is important to get the vaccine before becoming sexually active. The vaccine is approved for boys and girls and men and women between 9 years and 26 years of age.
Studies are currently being done to test to see if the vaccine works for boys and men and for women older than 26 years of age.
Next: Other Organizations
Source
HPV Testing in the Evaluation of the Minimally Abnormal Papanicolaou Smear by BS Apgar, M.D., M.S., and G Brotzman, M.D. (American Family Physician May 15, 1999, http://www.aafp.org/afp/990515ap/2794.html)
Written by familydoctor.org editorial staff
Reviewed/Updated: 12/10
Created: 05/99
