The ACS recommendations called for girls aged 11 to 12 to be routinely vaccinated. Girls as young as 9 can be vaccinated as well. The guidelines also said that women ages 13 to 18 should also receive a follow up vaccine if they were never vaccinated for did not get all three shots.
The vaccine, Gardasil, protects against all strains of HPV, which causes about 70 percent of cervical cancers. The vaccine was made available last year.
The Center for Disease Control and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists called for women ages 19 to 26 also routinely get follow up shots if needed. However, the ACS disagreed.
The ACS reported that women in this age group were likely to have four or more sex partners, increasing the likelihood that they are already infected. The vaccine does not work in women already infected by HPV. The ACS also said there has not been enough research in the age group to render a universal vaccine recommendation.
There are several different strains of HPV. A few are known to cause cervical cancer and the others cause genital warts.
Stephanie V. Blank, MD, a gynecologic oncologist at the NYU Cancer Institute in New York City, said the vaccine would still protect women who have been exposed to the virus. If they have only one strain the vaccine will protect them from the other strains.
