Paper

The Case for Vaccinating Boys against Human Papillomavirus
Sarah C. Hull, Arthur L. Caplan

Center for Bioethics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pa., USA

Address of Corresponding Author

Public Health Genomics 2009;12:362-367 (DOI: 10.1159/000214926)

  Key Words

• Cervarix
• Gardasil
• Herd immunity
• Vaccination ethics
• Vaccination policy

  Abstract

Vaccination policy in the case of human papillomavirus (HPV) has remained a constant source of controversy ever since Gardasil, Merck's vaccine against HPV, received US Food and Drug Administration approval in the summer of 2006. This controversy has centered on the risks and benefits of vaccinating girls and women in rich and poor nations alike. However, despite all of the attention created by this important policy question, relatively little has been focused on another key public health question: should boys be vaccinated against HPV as well? If herd immunity against the most carcinogenic strains of HPV could be more rapidly and efficiently achieved by vaccinating everyone at risk for being a carrier, it logically follows that vaccine policy should expand to include boys and men.

Copyright © 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel

  Author Contacts

Prof. Arthur Caplan
Emanuel and Robert Hart Professor of Bioethics, University of Pennsylvania
Center for Bioethics, 3401 Market Street, Suite 320
Philadelphia, PA 19104 (USA)
Tel. +1 215 898 7136, E-Mail caplan@mail.med.upenn.edu

  Article Information

Published online: August 11, 2009
Number of Print Pages : 6
Number of Figures : 0, Number of Tables : 0, Number of References : 36