The Alliance for HPV Free Colorado is encouraging parents to get their kids vaccinated

AURORA, Colo. (KRDO) – April is marking Oral Cancer Awareness Month and the Alliance for HPV Free Colorado is encouraging parents to get their kids vaccinated to help prevent HPV-related cancers. 

According to the Oral Cancer Foundation, approximately 54,000 Americans were diagnosed with oral or oropharyngeal cancers in the U.S. just last year. 

Human Papillomavirus, or HPV, according to the Foundation, is estimated to cause 70% of all oropharyngeal cancer cases. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends adolescent boys and girls get the HPV vaccine from ages 11-12 but the Alliance for HPV Free Colorado says it can be administered as early as nine. 

The Alliance says giving the vaccine at this age can be important because it protects kids before they are ever exposed to HPV. 

Kids who get the HPV vaccine before their 15th birthday need just two doses. If started after they turn 15, three doses are recommended, the Alliance says. 

For Colorado, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) indicates that only 52% of 9-17 year-olds in Colorado have started the HPV vaccine series, but only 34% have completed it. 

Susan Cotten, the Dental Workgroup Lead for the Alliance says, “Although tobacco use and heavy alcohol consumption remain major risk factors for oral cancer, research shows that infection with the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is responsible for the rise of oropharyngeal/throat cancer diagnoses. The HPV vaccine is the best way to prevent these cancers.”