Std, Hpv | featured news

Shots that protect against cervical cancer do not make girls promiscuous, according to the first study to compare medical records for vaccinated and unvaccinated girls.

HPV is a sexually transmitted disease that is most commonly passed between people during vaginal or anal intercourse. But it can also be transmitted through genital-to-genital, or hand-to-genital contact, which is how the participants in the study likely got the virus, the researchers said. Out of the more than 40 sexually transmitted HPV strains, more than a dozen have been identified as cancer-causing, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Boys ages 11 and 12 years should be routinely vaccinated against the human papillomavirus, or HPV, to protect against anal, mouth and neck cancers that can result from sexual activity, a federal advisory committee said.