Apr 6, 2007 7:29 am US/Central
Some Gay Men In S.F. Getting HPV Vaccine For Women
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS) ―
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Gardasil is the controversial vaccine that protects against certain strains of the human papilloma virus, which can cause cervical cancer.
AP
They don't know if it will stop them from getting cancer, but gay and bisexual men in San Francisco are taking a vaccine meant to prevent cancer in females.
Gardasil is the controversial vaccine that protects against certain strains of the human papilloma virus, which can cause cervical cancer.
Hundreds of thousands of girls and young women have gotten at least one dose of Gardasil since the FDA approved it last June.
Now, some gay and bisexual men are asking their doctors for the vaccine in the hope that it will ward off anal and penile cancer which are also caused by HPV, said Jason Riggs, spokesman for San Francisco's STOP AIDS Project.
"The prevalence of anal cancer among gay and bisexual men is very high. So that's why some people are looking at this as a possible preventive cure for anal cancer and HPV that causes anal cancer," Riggs said.
Anal cancer in gay and bisexual men happens at a rate 35 times higher than that of the general population. It's even higher among those who are infected with HIV.
A clinic run by the San Francisco Department of Public Health is now offering Gardasil and some men have been paying the $350 for the standard three doses.
There's just one concern.
"It would be nice to see some published data that the vaccine works in men," said Dr. Jeff Klausner, the well known "Dr. K" of Internet fame who is also in charge of prevention and control of sexually transmitted diseases in San Francisco.
Klausner said that the male anatomy differs from the female anatomy so it is "a little bit of a leap" to say that if Gardasil works in women it will also work in men.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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