The HPV vaccine could also benefit adult women

 The HPV vaccine could also benefit adult women

Experts recommend that all sexually active women, regardless of age, be vaccinated against human papillomavirus (HPV) , because they all have a chance of getting an infection by a serotype of this virus, and although in most cases these infections go away by themselves, around 15% are caused by HPV types cause precancerous lesions in the neck of the uterus and, if not detected early, can become cancer .

Experts at the II Forum for the Prevention of Cervical Cancer in Castile and Leon, who just celebrated in Tordesillas, have also stressed the desirability of vaccination for all women who have already had precancerous lesions because, as explained Dr . Carlos de Grado, gynecologist Cervical Pathology Unit of the Hospital de Ávila, these patients have an increased risk of re-infection.

Women with cervical lesions are much more likely than others to develop new lesions or cervical cancer , even long after treatment ends, say the experts, the HPV vaccine before, during or after treatment may incur an added benefit to therapy and reduce the risk of recurrence.

The prevalence of HPV infection is higher in the immediate stage at the beginning of sexual relations-usually between 15 and 25 years, and then stabilizes and drops significantly after age 40. However, it has been found that with age HPV infection becomes persistent because the response of the immune system is lower and the maintenance of infection is what favors the development of premalignant lesions that can cause cancer.