HPV Vaccine Now For Men

Though the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) already approved the vaccine Gardasil for women aged 9 to 26, the vaccine has now been expanded to include men. Gardasil manufactured by Merck, protects against four strands of the Human papillomavirus (HPV), specifically: 6, 11, 16 and 18. The vaccine received the approval of the FDA in June of 2006.

HPV is a sexually transmitted disease that most sexually active individuals will contact at some point in their lives. Most of the time the virus will cause no symptoms and will clear up naturally, but this is not always the case. For some women, HPV leads to cervical cancer. In men, the virus may rarely lead to anus or penis cancer. HPV is also responsible for genital warts in both genders. The Gardasil vaccine has only been approved to protect against genital warts in men. Women who get the vaccine receive protection against genital warts and cervical cancer.

A new HPV vaccine has also recently received approval by the FDA, Cervarix. Manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, the new vaccine has been approved for women aged 10 to 26. The vaccine helps to protect against the types of HPV responsible for most cases of cervical cancer (types 16 and 18). GlaxoSmithKline expects to make the vaccine available before the end of 2009.