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Parents support HPV vaccination to prevent cancer, not STDs, in their teens
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Cancer prevention is the most compelling reason for parents to have their teenagers vaccinated against HPV regardless of their confidence in the vaccine, according to findings published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.
“Although our study focused on starting the HPV vaccine series vs. continuing it or completing it, completion is a concern. An MMWR found that by 2016, 60% of adolescents between the ages of 13 and 17 years had started the vaccine series, but only 43% were fully up to date or complete,” Melissa B. Gilkey, PhD, assistant professor in the department of health behavior at the UNC Gillings School of Public Health, told Infectious Diseases in Children.
To better understand the most effective way to counsel parents on HPV vaccination for their children, the researchers developed a national online survey in which participants rated 11 reasons that health care providers use to promote immunization. Parents of teenagers were instructed to choose the best and worst reasons for vaccination out of five options. They completed 11 of these choice exercises.
Over half (53%) of the 1,177 adults who responded to the survey were parents of males with a mean age of 14 years. Most children were non-Hispanic white (63%), Hispanic (20%) or non-Hispanic black (9%). Over half had received at least one dose of the HPV vaccine series (57%).
According to the respondents, the best reason for HPV vaccination was cancer prevention (P < .001). Other reasons they endorsed for vaccination included preventing common infections, the lasting benefits of immunization and the vaccine’s safety (all P < .001).
The worst reasons for vaccination included scientific novelty, the provider’s choice to vaccinate their own children and that their child was due for the vaccine (all P < .001). Gilkey and colleagues noted that the ranking of reasons for immunization against HPV was not significantly affected by parents’ confidence in the vaccination.
“We recommend using a ‘presumptive’ or ‘announcement’ approach to introduce adolescent vaccines,” Gilkey said. “For parents who have additional questions, our study suggests that focusing on cancer prevention in promising.” – by Katherine Bortz
Disclosures: The authors report no relevant financial disclosures.
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