Millions In U.S. Infected With HPV (Study Finds Virus Strikes a Third of Women by Age 24)

The Washington Post ^ | Wednesday, February 28, 2007 | David Brown

[MinorityRepublican]

More than one-third of American women are infected with human papillomavirus (HPV), which in rare cases can lead to cervical cancer, by the time they are 24 years old, according to a study being published today.

The new estimates suggest that there are 7.5 million girls and women 14 to 24 years old infected with the microbe -- about two-thirds more than an earlier but less comprehensive study had found.

Overall, about one-quarter of women under age 60 are infected at any given time, making HPV by far the most common sexually transmitted disease in the country.

News of the higher-than-expected prevalence of HPV infection was balanced by the discovery that only 2.2 percent of women were carrying one of the two virus strains most likely to lead to cervical cancer -- about half the rate found in previous surveys.

The lead researcher cautioned the findings do not mean that HPV infection rates are rising, only that they are higher than previously thought.

"For us, it's just a different measurement -- and a more accurate one," said Eileen F. Dunne, a physician and epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The estimate comes from the federal government's ongoing National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which provides the clearest snapshot of the U.S. population's health through dozens of measurements, laboratory tests and survey questions.

The new findings, published in today's Journal of the American Medical Association, are likely to further encourage use of a vaccine against HPV approved in June by the Food and Drug Administration for females 9 to 26. Its maker, Merck, until recently was lobbying state legislatures to mandate vaccination of middle-school girls -- a step that more than 18 states are moving toward.

[conservative in nyc]

Who paid for this study?

[KC_Conspirator]

This study smells.

HPV is a problem, but I guarantee this study is packed full of lies.

[LoneRangerMassachusetts]

More than one-third of American women are infected with human papillomavirus (HPV), which in rare cases can lead to cervical cancer, by the time they are 24 years old, according to a study being published today.

If it is a rare cause, how do they know it is a cause?

[conservative in nyc]

I'll answer my own question. From the actual study:

Funding/Support: This study was supported by the Division of STD Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

You and I paid for it. I was expecting the answer to be Merck.

[pillut48]

If WAPO is reporting this, it *must* be true!!

Still not forcing my child to have the vaccine at age 12 though...

[Moosilauke]

"the findings do not mean that HPV infection rates are rising, only that they are higher than previously thought."
Wow! Talk about your "good news...bad news". Nice that the WaPo could lead with the cheery perspective.

[ASOC]

"In the 2003-2004 round of the national health survey, about 2,000 females aged 14 to 59 submitted self-collected vaginal swabs. Laboratory testing detected HPV in 27 percent of them. In the 14-to-24 age group, the rate was 34 percent. The highest prevalence -- 45 percent -- was in women age 20 to 24."

An awfully small sample - 2,000 from a possible population of 150 million? (1.3 x 10^-5) That's a lot of zeros in front of the decimal point.......

[Politicalmom]

I don't care how widespread it is. If a kid can't get it from sitting next to another kid in class, the government has NO business mandating it.

[berdie]

Correct!!

[AZLiberty]

A heterosexual male relative, 46, just completed six weeks of radiotherapy for head and neck cancer believed to be caused by HPV. The vast majority of cervical cancer is now known to be related to HPV.

This is serious stuff and yet another consequence of the "sexual revolution".

[berdie]

Hmmmm...Maybe the guys need to get involved in a vaccine as well as the girls.

[the808bass]

Hmmmm...Maybe the guys need to get involved in a vaccine as well as the girls.

Merck is way ahead of you. Give them another year or two.

[the808bass]

An awfully small sample - 2,000 from a possible population of 150 million?

Though I'm far from a statistical whiz kid, this is a pretty average sample size for a drug study.

[AZLiberty]

It's no secret who the girls are getting HPV from.

[ASOC]

I'll admit the article does not show the numbers used - so you can't tell if the bulk of the respondents were from just two cities, if one ethic group was over represented, what the age spread and so on.

For other CDC studies about womens issues
"The CDC study did not have a survey sample large enough to ensure adequate ... overall sample size to 4122, and to include urban Latina women " - this on exercise and health

On another study "Sample Size: Each group began with more than 5000 participants. Citation: National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Mature Women (NLSW)"

A California study -
"The California Women's Health Survey is an ongoing, monthly telephone survey that collects information on health-related behavior and attitudes from randomly selected adult women (8,9). Trained staff interviewed participants in 2000 (n = 4,012) and 2003 (n = 4,004) in English (n = 7,058) or Spanish (n = 958). Participants reported race, ethnicity, country of birth, year of entrance into the United States, and current age, county of residence, number and age(s) of children, educational attainment, household income, and access to healthcare coverage. "

My daughter is now married with children and so makes these (HPV immunization) decisions for herself. If she were a sixth grader, I would fight the requirement for immunization before she went to school.

YMMV.