Opinion: HPV vaccine safe, effective and vital

Dr Juliet Rumball-Smith.

We read with interest the article by Nickie Muir 'Hard to sign off on vaccine' about her thoughts on the HPV vaccine, currently offered to girls aged 12 years.

Ms Muir should be proud to have such an articulate, pragmatic and intelligent daughter. We also appreciate her discussion about this vaccine, in particular her points on how this immunisation protects women from a number of significant diseases, including cervical cancer.

Dr Roger Tuck.

Her point on whether boys should also be offered this vaccine is entirely valid - ideally boys would also be directly protected from the diseases associated with HPV, and help contribute to reducing the circulation of this virus amongst the population.

We would like to inform your readers that this vaccine can be purchased for their boys through your local GP, and has been found to be both safe and effective when given to boys and men aged 9-26 years, with the optimal age of administration 11-13 years.

As Ms Muir's column discusses, contemplating the sexual health of your 12-year-old daughter can be difficult for a parent. And it is true - the vaccine should be given prior to first sexual contact to give our girls the best protection. (This is particularly important given 40 per cent are infected with HPV in the first two years of sexual activity.)

However, what many people don't know is that the timing of administration reflects the science of the vaccine. In general, girls get the best immune response to the vaccine (higher antibody levels that last for longer) if it is given when they are younger. It is no judgment on the sexual activity of our daughters, it is simply science.

We (the authors of this letter) are parents ourselves, and we know how excruciating it is to navigate through the deluge of information about this vaccine. Can we give just one example? The American College of Pediatricians recently publicly warned of the risks of HPV vaccine. This group - deliberately or not (but we have our suspicions!) - may have misled the public into thinking theirs was an objective, evidence-based, scientific conclusion.

However, this organisation is not the American Academy of Paediatrics, the professional organisation founded in 1930 with more than 62,000 members that wholeheartedly recommends the HPV vaccine for boys and girls aged 11 -12 years. In fact, the 'College' has less than 200 members, and was established in only 2002 to protest against adoption rights for gay couples. It also opposes abortion, and suggests schools discourage 'harmful homosexual practices'.

Parents shouldn't have to run background checks on organisations - this is just one example to demonstrate the difficulty in extracting truth about this vaccine from the information available.

Finally, we would like to emphasise that the HPV vaccine is on the childhood immunisation schedule for only two reasons: first, the disease is highly prevalent and has significant health consequences. Second, the vaccine can prevent it effectively and is safe.

Northlanders are a powerful people; immunising helps our children have every opportunity for health, and keeps our community strong.

- Dr Juliet Rumball-Smith is a Medical Officer of Health, for Northland DHB and Dr Roger Tuck a DHB pediatrician.