Author | Xu Diandian
Not long ago, I saw a piece of good news:
Starting in September 2022, Guangdong will take the lead in launching a free HPV vaccination program.
This free vaccination program mainly has these three main points:
Vaccination targets: Girls under the age of 14 who have newly entered the first grade of junior high school and have not been vaccinated against HPV.
Vaccination principle: Vaccination is carried out in accordance with the principle of informed, voluntary and free of charge.
Vaccine type: Bivalent vaccine, 6 months after the first dose, the second dose.
In recent years, the HPV vaccine has almost become a net red vaccine, and more and more young women have begun to pay attention to it and queue up to make an appointment for a vaccine.
But there are still many people who know nothing about HPV vaccines, and even fewer girls under the age of 14 are vaccinated.
In fact, girls can get the HPV vaccine after the age of 9, and the sooner they get it, the better.
Today's article, to give you a detailed science popularization about what HPV is, why try to fight as early as possible.
If you have a girl at home, it is recommended to read it.
If you have girls at home, try to fight early
Dr. Zhang Wenhong has repeatedly mentioned the importance of hpvic vaccination for women before they reach adulthood.
He said that there are only two vaccines in human history that can prevent tumors, and one of them is the HPV vaccine.
"Especially if there is a girl in your family, give the vaccine first when she doesn't understand anything."
Why is HPV vaccination so important?
Because, cervical cancer is the second biggest killer of women's health, second only to breast cancer. A shocking set of data:
In China, 1 woman develops cervical cancer every 5 minutes and 1 woman dies of cervical cancer every 10 minutes.
Image source: Medical and Health News
By vaccinating against HPV, the incidence of cervical cancer can be reduced and more people can be saved from death from cervical cancer. But unfortunately, there are still quite a few people who mention HPV, they smell discolored, and there is still a big misunderstanding about its cognition:
Is this a disease that only people who live in misconduct get?
WHO recommends that the golden age for girls to vaccinate against HPV is 9-14 years.
Because girls with no sex experience are vaccinated, the antibodies produced are more protective. Studies have shown that after receiving the same vaccine, the level of HPV antibodies in adolescent women is twice that of adult women.
Women aged 15-45, who are the second-priority group to be vaccinated, should also be vaccinated as soon as possible to reduce the risk of cancer.
The rate of HPV infection may be far beyond your imagination
HPV, an abbreviation for human papillomavirus, has nothing to do with HIV (HIV).
There are more than 100 members of the HPV family, and people divide the virus into low-risk and high-risk types according to the level of carcinogenicity of the virus.
Low-risk types of HPV virus are usually associated with skin diseases such as common warts, flat warts, and plantar warts;
The high-risk type of HPV virus is closely related to the occurrence and development of malignant tumors such as cervical cancer, rectal cancer, oral cancer, and tonsillar cancer.
The rate of HPV infection may be far beyond your imagination.
The main route of transmission of this virus is sexual transmission. Most people who have sex will be infected with HPV at least once in their lifetime.
Theoretically, HPV may also be accessible through objects, but the probability is very small.
After infection with this virus, squamous epithelial proliferation may occur on human skin or mucous membranes.
The HPV vaccine is currently the most effective means to prevent cervical cancer.
HPV virus infection can be prevented by injecting vaccines, which in turn can effectively prevent the onset of cervical cancer.
Image source: Xinhua News Agency
Cervical cancer ≠ hpv infection
There are also many people who are worried that once infected with the HPV virus, will they get cervical cancer?
HPV infection is the leading cause of cervical cancer, but not all HPV infections turn into cervical cancer. 90% of infected people can rely on their own immunity to naturally remove the HPV virus from the body within 1-2 years.
Only women with high-risk HPV who have been infected for more than two years are likely to develop cervical cancer.
Moreover, from hpv infection to cervical cancer, it takes almost 5-10 years.
Therefore, don't worry too much, early prevention and early screening are the key, it is an important means to find the virus. Once early cervical cancer is detected, it can be saved through treatment.
Recently, a 19-year-old girl in Guangzhou was diagnosed with precancerous cervical lesions. Fortunately, the discovery was timely and he was successfully discharged from the hospital after surgery.
However, if it is not found in time, it may develop into real cervical cancer.
How should vaccines be chosen?
At present, there are three HPV vaccines that are allowed to enter China, mainly 2-valent, 4-valent and 9-valent.
The main difference between them is that the hpv virus models for prevention are different, and of course the price is different.
"Valence" represents the type of virus that is prevented. The higher the price, the more viruses can be prevented.
2-valent vaccine mainly protects against two virus models, 16 and 18, and is suitable for ages 9-45;
4-valent vaccine mainly prevents four virus models 6, 11, 16 and 18, and is suitable for ages 20-45;
The 9-valent vaccine mainly prevents 6, 11, 16, 18, 31, 33, 45, 52, 58 years, and is suitable for ages 16-26 years.
All three vaccines can protect against HPV-related diseases. WHO does not favor the specific one, and everyone can voluntarily vaccinate based on actual age.
HPV vaccine has been on the market for 15 years, from the clinical data, the first batch of human antibodies are still very high, experts estimate that another 50 years is not a problem.
However, vaccination does not completely eliminate the possibility of HPV infection, and regular cervical cancer screening is still necessary.
At present, there is no absolute age limit on hpvide vaccine internationally, but the preventive effect will decline with age.
If you miss the cervical cancer vaccination period, you don't have to panic, and regular cervical cancer screening can also play a good preventive effect.
If possible, it is recommended to do TCT and HPV testing once a year.
It should be noted that vaccination is not recommended for these three groups of people:
Vaccination is not recommended for pregnant women or women who are trying to conceive;
Lactating women, vaccination is not recommended;
Women who are particularly prone to allergies are not recommended.
Finally, back to a common concern:
Where can I schedule vaccinations?
Generally speaking, community hospitals can make an appointment for HPV vaccination, and everyone can call the local CDC to consult and make an appointment for HPV vaccine.
For the health of your child, don't forget to make an appointment as early as possible.
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Author: Diandian Xu, Editor of the Parenting Column, focuses on parenting and child psychology research. Some of the pictures are from the Internet, and the copyright belongs to the original author.