PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

HPV vaccine trends point to failures in patient education, vaccine programs

Staggeringly low uptake rates amongs females and males across a range of ages, socio-economic spectrum

2013-03-14
(Press-News.org) Completion rates for the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine series across both genders continue to remain alarmingly low nearly seven years after its introduction, suggesting that better patient education and increased public vaccine financing programs are needed, according to new research from the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB).

The researchers report "startling" trends in a series of three separate studies published in Cancer, Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics and Vaccine.

Using data from the 2010 National Health Interview Survey, an annual cross-sectional survey tracking more than 27,000 adults in the US., researchers found: More than three-quarters of nearly 2,000 women ages 18-26 did not receive the HPV vaccine; another 10% were incompletely vaccinated (three doses required); and two-thirds said they did not want the vaccine, an attitude the researchers attribute to inadequate knowledge, lack of physician recommendation or negative beliefs about vaccines.

Just two percent of nearly 3,000 males ages 9-17 initiated the vaccine and fewer than half of those (0.5%) completed the three-dose series during 2010, the first full year when the vaccine was formally recommended for boys.

Analyzing private insurance claims from 2006-2009: Of 514 privately insured males ages 9-26 who initiated the HPV vaccine series, only 21% completed the series on an off-label basis within the recommended 12 months, and rates decreased over the period – a surprising result, the researchers said, as they surmised that the patient and/or their parents were motivated to obtain the vaccine before the FDA approved it for male use.

"This is the first generation with the opportunity to be vaccinated against the devastating cancers associated with HPV, but the majority are missing the opportunity," said lead author Dr. Abbey Berenson, professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and director of UTMB's Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Women's Health (CIRWH). "We cannot overstate the public health importance of vaccinating girls and boys. The HPV vaccine is one of the few proven ways to quickly and dramatically decrease our cancer burden."

While cost was a barrier for completion, lack of awareness and understanding about the vaccine continue to be the biggest hindrances. These obstacles were especially pertinent for low-income and/or uninsured families and minority women. The researchers recommend better educational interventions; new physician-patient communication methods, including email and text message; increased physician recommendations; and public vaccine financing programs to increase uptake and completion rates across the board.

This latest research provides a broader picture of HPV vaccine acceptance and builds on a growing body of knowledge at UTMB in this area. Previous studies led by Berenson have focused on completion rates among females ages 9-27 and differences in parents' willingness to vaccinate their sons and daughters.

An estimated 20 million Americans ages 15-49 are currently infected with HPV, and at least 50% of sexually active men and women will contract it at some point in their lives. The virus is the cause of nearly all cases of cervical cancer and nearly 90% of genital warts. HPV is also associated with vulvar, vaginal, penile, anal, and oropharyngeal cancers.

"These results underscore the critical need for better educational interventions and improved communication methods – for patients, parents and physicians – about the importance of initiating and completing the HPV vaccine to save our children from serious disease," said Berenson. "It is especially important to reach parents, who need to understand that this vaccine will help them do what all parents want most – protect their children from harm."

### Other contributing authors include: Dr. Mahbubur Rahman, associate professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; Dr. Tabassum H. Laz, postdoctoral fellow at CIRWH; Dr. Jacqueline Hirth, assistant professor at CIRWH; Dr. Alai Tan, assistant professor, Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health; and Dr. Gregg Wilkinson, professor of epidemiology, Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health and senior fellow, CIRWH. Funding support came from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Fungus uses copper detoxification as crafty defense mechanism

2013-03-14
DURHAM, NC – A potentially lethal fungal infection appears to gain virulence by being able to anticipate and disarm a hostile immune attack in the lungs, according to findings by researchers at Duke Medicine. Defense mechanisms used by the fungus Cryptococcus neoformans enable it to lead to fatal meningitis, which is one of the opportunistic infections often associated with death in HIV/AIDS patients, organ transplant recipients, diabetics and other immunosuppressed patients. In describing the complex process of how C. neoformans averts destruction in the lungs of mice, ...

Study: Dynamic new software improves care of aging brain

Study: Dynamic new software improves care of aging brain
2013-03-14
INDIANAPOLIS -- Innovative medical records software developed by geriatricians and informaticians from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University Center for Aging Research will provide more personalized health care for older adult patients, a population at significant risk for mental health decline and disorders. A new study published in eGEMs, a peer-reviewed online publication recently launched by the Electronic Data Methods Forum, unveils the enhanced Electronic Medical Record Aging Brain Care Software, an automated decision-support system that enables care ...

Mayo Clinic and Illinois researchers develop new sensor for methylated DNA

2013-03-14
ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Collaborators from Mayo-Illinois Alliance for Technology Based Healthcare have developed a new, single molecule test for detecting methylated DNA. Methylation -- the addition of a methyl group of molecules to a DNA strand -- is one of the ways gene expression is regulated. The findings appear in the current issue of Scientific Reports (Nature Publishing Group). "While nanopores have been studied for genomic sequencing and screening analysis, this new assay can potentially circumvent the need for some of the current processes in evaluating epigenetics-related ...

Researchers divide enzyme to conquer genetic puzzle

2013-03-14
Rice University researchers have found a way to divide and modify enzymes to create what amounts to a genetic logic gate. Biochemist Matthew Bennett and graduate student David Shis created a library of AND gates by mutating a protein from a bacterial virus. The well-understood protein known as T7 RNA polymerase (RNAP) is a strong driver of transcription in cells. Their discovery should help overcome a bottleneck in the development of synthetic gene networks that mimic digital circuitry. These networks could become diagnostic systems that look for signs of disease and, ...

News tips from the journal mBio®, volume 4, issue 1

2013-03-14
Disarming One of the Deadliest Pathogens Francisella tularensis, the cause of tularemia and one of the deadliest respiratory pathogens in existence, is considered a potential biological weapon because it is readily aerosolized and exhibits a high degree of infectivity and lethality in humans. While a live attenuated vaccine strain has been developed, it remains unlicensed because scientists have been unable to understand the basis for its attenuated virulence. In an attempt to find an acceptable live attenuated vaccine strain, researchers from Harvard Medical School ...

Outside the box: UCLA uses brain aneurysm treatment to stop irregular heart rhythms

2013-03-14
For the first time, a UCLA team has used a technique normally employed in treating brain aneurysms to treat severe, life-threatening irregular heart rhythms in two patients. This unique use of the method helped stop ventricular arrhythmias — which cause "electrical storms" — that originated in the septum, the thick muscle that separates the heart's two ventricles. This area is virtually impossible to reach with conventional treatment. The research is published in the February issue of Heart Rhythm, the official journal of the Heart Rhythm Society, and is highlighted ...

College kids who don't drink milk could face serious consequences

2013-03-14
URBANA – College-age kids who don't consume at least three servings of dairy daily are three times more likely to develop metabolic syndrome than those who do, said a new University of Illinois study. "And only one in four young persons in the study was getting the recommended amount of dairy," said Margarita Teran-Garcia, a U of I professor of food science and human nutrition. That alarming finding means that three-fourths of the 18- to 25-year-old college applicants surveyed are at risk for metabolic syndrome, the researcher said. Metabolic syndrome occurs when ...

Particles and fields package integrated on upcoming Mars-bound spacecraft

Particles and fields package integrated on upcoming Mars-bound spacecraft
2013-03-14
The six science instruments that comprise the Particles and Fields Package that will characterize the solar wind and ionosphere of Mars have been integrated aboard NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft. The spacecraft is on track for launch later this year. The Solar Wind Electron Analyzer (SWEA) was the last of the six instruments to be delivered, and was integrated late last week at Lockheed Martin in Littleton, Colo. SWEA measures the properties of electrons at Mars, one electron at a time, and can process up to one million events per second. The ...

NASA sees Cyclone Tim develop in the Coral Sea

NASA sees Cyclone Tim develop in the Coral Sea
2013-03-14
System 96P has been moving through the Coral Sea near northeastern Australia over the last couple of days, and today, March 14, NASA's Aqua satellite captured the storm as it matured into Tropical Storm Tim. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument aboard NASA's Aqua satellite captured a visible image of Tropical Cyclone Tim in the Coral Sea on March 13, 2013 at 04:05 UTC (12:05 a.m. EDT). The MODIS image showed a large band of thunderstorms wrapping into the center of circulation from the south and east. Cyclone Tim's northeastern quadrant ...

Witnessing starbursts in young galaxies

2013-03-14
On March 13, it was announced the most vigorous bursts of star birth in the cosmos took place much earlier than previously thought - results now published in a set of papers in Nature and the Astrophysical Journal. As these findings are published, three of the scientists at the forefront of this research - including the lead researcher of the latest findings – offered their insights about what this reveals about the history of our universe, and how the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is providing a "zoom lens" into the early universe. This includes ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Thirty-year mystery of dissonance in the “ringing” of black holes explained

Less intensive works best for agricultural soil

Arctic rivers project receives “national champion” designation from frontiers foundation

Computational biology paves the way for new ALS tests

Study offers new hope for babies born with opioid withdrawal syndrome

UT, Volkswagen Group of America celebrate research partnership

New Medicare program could dramatically improve affordability for cancer drugs – if patients enroll

Are ‘zombie’ skin cells harmful or helpful? The answer may be in their shapes

University of Cincinnati Cancer Center presents research at AACR 2025

Head and neck, breast, lung and survivorship studies headline Dana-Farber research at AACR Annual Meeting 2025

AACR: Researchers share promising results from MD Anderson clinical trials

New research explains why our waistlines expand in middle age

Advancements in muon detection: Taishan Antineutrino Observatory's innovative top veto tracker

Chips off the old block

Microvascular decompression combined with nerve combing for atypical trigeminal neuralgia

Cutting the complexity from digital carpentry

Lung immune cell type “quietly” controls inflammation in COVID-19

Fiscal impact of expanded Medicare coverage for GLP-1 receptor agonists to treat obesity

State and sociodemographic trends in US cigarette smoking with future projections

Young adults drive historic decline in smoking

NFCR congratulates Dr. Robert C. Bast, Jr. on receiving the AACR-Daniel D. Von Hoff Award for Outstanding Contributions to Education and Training in Cancer Research

Chimpanzee stem cells offer new insights into early embryonic development

This injected protein-like polymer helps tissues heal after a heart attack

FlexTech inaugural issue launches, pioneering interdisciplinary innovation in flexible technology

In Down syndrome mice, 40Hz light and sound improve cognition, neurogenesis, connectivity

Methyl eugenol: potential to inhibit oxidative stress, address related diseases, and its toxicological effects

A vascularized multilayer chip reveals shear stress-induced angiogenesis in diverse fluid conditions

AI helps unravel a cause of Alzheimer's disease and identify a therapeutic candidate

Coalition of Autism Scientists critiques US Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative

Structure dictates effectiveness, safety in nanomedicine

[Press-News.org] HPV vaccine trends point to failures in patient education, vaccine programs
Staggeringly low uptake rates amongs females and males across a range of ages, socio-economic spectrum