HPV VACCINE | This Wednesday, Cordoba will vaccinate all boys between 13 and 18 years old against HPV without an appointment.

This Wednesday, Cordoba will vaccinate all boys between 13 and 18 years old against HPV without an appointment.CORDOVA

Medical centers Cordoba and the rest of Andalusia will vaccinate Tomorrow is the day June 19, without dateto all teenage boys of the Autonomous Community against human papilloma virus (HPV) who have no previous doses. They must be between 13 and 18 years old, and thanks to this they will be able to avoid contracting such serious diseases as cancer of the genital organs – in the anogenital area – and cancer of the head, neck – mouth and pharynx.

According to the council, until May last year the vaccine was included in the official schedule for all teenage girls aged 12 to 18 – with coverage of more than 90% – and from 2023 also for boys aged 12 and over. Subsequently, the indication for boys was expanded to 18 years of age to cover the entire age group.

Tomorrow, all Andalusian provinces will host various vaccination points both morning and afternoon. A total of 463 points will be used – 310 with daytime hours -: 39 will be in Almeria; 56 in Cadiz; 41 V Cordoba; 36 in Granada; 28 in Huelva; 40 in Jaén 40; 70 in Malaga Malaga and 153 in Seville.

Information about the centers and their work schedule can be found on the Health website.

Vaccination in adolescence

HPV affects both sexes, so getting vaccinated as early as possible during adolescence is important. With a single dose, it is possible to reduce the transmission of the virus and thereby prevent the risk of developing cancer, and also prevent the most common sexually transmitted infection between men and women, and that this infection can become persistent, causing cancer, both at the genital level and on the head-neck level.

HPV is usually transmitted through sexual contact (affects 80% of women and men), in most cases it goes away over time, but in some women (10-15%) it does not go away, leaving them at greater risk of developing cervical cancer. It has been observed that the prevalence of infection is higher in men than in women and the infection persists longer. HPV

in the mucous membrane, especially the oropharyngeal and anogenital, which can lead to the appearance of cancer in these places.

This type of cancer takes more than 10 years to develop, so it requires a long period of time to detect, treat and cure it. This infection does not cause discomfort or symptoms, so screening can tell you if it exists.

While vaccination is the best prevention, experts recommend other preventive measures such as using condoms, which reduce the chance of transmission, and women participating in cytology screening programs as they can detect infections early, which could be abnormal cervical cells. treatment before cancer appears. Screening reduces the incidence and mortality of cervical cancer by 70 to 80 percent and should be performed in women aged 25 to 65 years.

In fact, the cervical screening program uterus (cervix), a pilot project began in the province of Cadiz in February this year and is planned to be gradually implemented by age group for women from 25 to 65 years old, starting this summer. Thus, women of the first planned age groups will begin to receive letters at home with invitations to undergo screening for cervical cancer.