NEPA Vital Signs - Winter Spring 2018 - 14

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Feature

Planning Ahead
Helps to Address
HPV Vaccine Fears

ear can be palpable. When a patient presents with an
illness surrounded by stigma and misconceptions, he
or she may be fearful of what they are in store for. As
patients, we have likely once felt uneasy about our perception
of a diagnosis or treatment. As providers, we have seen this fear
in our patients first-hand and have had to manage working them
through their hesitations.

contributed to the unwarranted stigma surrounding the virus
and the vaccine itself.
One such misconception is that receiving the HPV vaccine
encourages teens to become sexually active. Research has shown
that this thought is unfounded; no vaccine is powerful enough
to have such an effect. Teens are far more likely to regulate their
behavior based on that of their peers, media to which they are
exposed, and the actions of those they look up to.

Our qualms have changed over time. What was once a fear of
the smallpox vaccine in the late 1800s became hesitation over
Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis (DTP) in the mid 1970s and
later Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) in the late 1990s.
Today, the vaccine under fire is that for HPV.

Parents of teens of age to receive the HPV vaccine have also
expressed their concern of having to have 'the talk' with their
teen and that their child may not be ready for such conversation. Having a conversation about safe sex practices with your
child is no cake walk, but neither is HPV. Both can have lifelong
consequences, for better or worse.

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is responsible for nearly all
cases of cervical cancer, which is now the number two killer
of women worldwide. In fact, HPV strains 16 and 18 alone are
responsible for 70% of all cases of cervical cancer. The currently
available 9-valent HPV vaccine covers these two strains along
with seven others: 6, 11, 31, 33, 45, 52 and 58. Though introduced
to the U.S. market only 11 years ago, the vaccine has contributed
to improving diagnosis rates and is making a meaningful impact
on overall health.

OKAY, I GET IT, BUT HOW CAN I REWRITE THE SCRIPT?

Both patients and providers have the ability to shape the
conversation around the HPV vaccine. As a patient or parent of
a patient, it is perfectly reasonable to have questions about the
treatment that you or your child may receive.
On both sides of the conversation, the best first step is to
educate ourselves. As patients, we have the right - and with a
wealth of online resources, the ability - to do a bit of research
for ourselves. Conducting our own searches will not replace the
conversation we can have with our providers, but rather, help
prepare us for them.

WE KNOW IT WORKS. WHY DON'T SOME
PATIENTS WANT IT?

The only contraindications for administering the vaccine is
a patient's allergy to the vaccine itself or one of its ingredients
and pregnancy. The vaccine is widely available at primary care
offices across the nation and is fully covered by insurance for
girls ages 11 through 26 and boys 11 through 21 (sometimes even
longer if the patient is considered high-risk). The vaccine is not
particularly painful, nor does receiving it restrict the patient
from any future activity. So why the hesitation?

As providers, we owe it to our patients to thoroughly understand available treatment options. Research shows that the
more confident a provider is about their own understanding of
a vaccine, the more likely they will be able to fully explain it to
their patients and/or parents of patients. Patients can sense a
provider's hesitation and will likely turn down a treatment that
their provider does not seem passionate about, provided it is
not mandated. Being able to fully answer patients' questions
can help a provider build their confidence and strengthen their
patient-provider relationship.

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS

Because the HPV vaccine is built for adolescents, parents and
guardians are often involved in the decision making process
when it comes time for an adolescent to receive the shot. Lack
of knowledge of the detriments and prevalence of HPV have
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NEPA Vital Signs - Winter Spring 2018

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