HPV Found in Over 40% of Adults

Approximately 42 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 69 are infected with genital human papillomavirus (HPV), putting them at risk for certain cancers, federal health officials reported.

Additionally, 25 percent of men were infected with high-risk genital HPV.

At the same time, about 40 percent of women carried genital HPV, while almost 20 percent had high-risk genital HPV, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This CDC report provides the most recent national estimates of oral HPV prevalence among adults from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

During 2011–2014, the prevalence of any oral HPV for adults was 7.3%; high-risk HPV was reported at 4.0%.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States. Some HPV types can cause genital warts and are considered low risk, with a small chance for causing cancer.

HPV can cause cervical cancer, which is the fourth most common cancer in women, with an estimated 266,000 deaths and 528,000 new cases in 2012.

Other cancers associated with HPV include cancers of the vulva, vagina, penis, anus, and oropharynx (cancers of the back of the throat, including the base of the tongue and tonsils).

While there is no routine screening test for HPV-associated diseases other than cervical cancer, you should visit your doctor regularly for checkups. It is also important to be vaccinated to prevent these cancer.

Prevention is always better than treatment.

There are safe and effective HPV vaccines. They can protect males and females against diseases, including cancers, caused by HPV.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved:

• Merck's Gardasil
• Merck’s Gardasil 9

The CDC recommends that 11- to 12-year-olds receive two doses of HPV vaccine at least six months apart, rather than the previously recommended three doses to protect against cancers caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) infections.

Teens and young adults who start the series later, at ages 15 through 26 years, will continue to need three doses of HPV vaccine to protect against cancer-causing HPV infection. Young women can get HPV vaccine through age 26, and young men can get vaccinated through age 21.

The CDC Vaccine Price Lists posted on this website provide current vaccine contract prices and list the private sector vaccine prices for general information.

The authors of this report did not disclose any conflicts of interest: Geraldine McQuillan, Deanna Kruszon-Moran, and Ryne Paulose-Ram are with the National Center for Health Statistics, Division of Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys. Lauri E. Markowitz is with the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Division of Viral Diseases. Elizabeth R. Unger is with the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, Division of High-Consequence Pathogens and Pathology.