We know there is a lot of confusing information surrounding the different HPV vaccines. This parent information page provides downloadable fact sheets for both the US and UK as well as other resources outlining the different guidelines and indications of each available vaccine. It is our hope that these resources make the facts a little more clear, and in doing so create a culture of knowledge and information around these lifesaving measures!

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HPV Vaccination: US

The Facts

HPV Vaccination: UK

The Facts

HPV Vaccine Safety

A few resources that may be useful in discussing HPV vaccines with parents:
  1. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) Website – HPV Vaccine for Parents & Public (includes questions about vaccine safety). The CDC is the leading national public health institute of the United States. https://www.cdc.gov/hpv/parents/questions-answers.html#safe
  2. American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) – HPV Vaccine – Frequently Asked Questions. The AAP has 64,000 members and boasts the largest pediatric publishing program in the world, https://www.aap.org/en-us/Documents/hpv_vaccine_safety_faq.pdf
  3. Link to HPV Vaccine Safety Statement from CDC, AAP, and the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) (with a good list of safety references at the end): https://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/pdf/data-summary-hpv-gardasil-vaccine-is-safe.pdf
  4. Immunization Action Coalition (IAC) – fact sheet on HPV (see safety information towards the bottom). www.immunize.org is the premier non-profit web-based resource for practical, user-friendly immunization information available today, serving more than 25,000 visitors per day. http://www.immunize.org/askexperts/experts_hpv.asp
  5. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Vaccine Education Center. CHOP is one of the largest and oldest children's hospitals in the world. CHOP has been ranked as the best children's hospital in the United States by U.S. News & World Report and Parents Magazine. Each year the hospital admits more than 28,000 children and more than 1,167,000 are seen in the emergency and outpatient departments. https://www.chop.edu/centers-programs/vaccine-education-center/vaccine-details/human-papillomavirus
  6. World Health Organization (WHO) Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety – Safety Update on HPV vaccines. The WHO is an agency of the United Nations concerned with international public health.” Over 270 million doses of HPV vaccines have been distributed. The WHO’s subcommittee on vaccine safety first reviewed the safety data in 2007, and subsequently in 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, and 2015. The risk of anaphylaxis has been characterized as approximately 1.7 cases per million doses, and syncope was established as a common anxiety or stress-related reaction to the injection. No other adverse reactions have been identified and GACVS considers HPV vaccines to be extremely safe. https://www.who.int/vaccine_safety/committee/topics/hpv/June_2017/en/
A few other important scientific publications on the safety of the vaccine:
  1. Safety of Human Papillomavirus Vaccines: An Updated Review – Drug Safety (2018). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29280070. Meta-analysis of 109 studies, including 15 population-based studies in over 2.5 million vaccinated individuals across six countries. All vaccines demonstrated an acceptable safety profile. There was no consistent evidence of an increased risk of any adverse events of special interest (AESI), including demyelinating syndromes or neurological conditions such as complex regional pain or postural orthostatic tachycardia syndromes. The risk-benefit profile for HPV vaccines remains highly favourable.
  2. Quadrivalent HPV vaccine safety review and safety monitoring plans for nine-valent HPV vaccine in the US -- Human Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics (March 2016). Both pre-licensure and post-licensure HPV safety data have been reassuring with no confirmed safety signals identified https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4964727/
  3. An Overview of Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Safety, 2006-2015 – Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal (2015). “Across 7 phase 3 clinical trials involving more than 29,000 males and females ages 9-45 years, vaccination was generally well tolerated. Because of its expected public health benefit in reducing cervical cancer and other HPV-related diseases, the vaccine has been implemented in the national vaccination programs of several countries, with over 178 million doses distributed worldwide.”

Video credit: survivornet