When I was 14 years old, my pediatrician recommended I receive the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. She told me I didn’t have to be sexually active to get vaccinated.

I thought, “Sure, why not?” If I could help decrease my odds of becoming ill, then I’d do it. At the time, all I knew was this vaccine would aid in cancer prevention.

However, HPV is much more serious than I thought. It can actually cause cancer in both men and women, including cancer in the cervix, vagina, anus, penis and throat. And while HPV is a common sexually transmitted infection, it can also be transmitted through skin-to-skin contact, so condoms don’t offer foolproof protection against the disease.

It’s terrifying to think we’re so easily susceptible to this cancer strain. As adolescents mature and become sexually active, the chance of catching HPV only gets higher.

A study published on Feb. 16 by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that many fewer teenage girls and young women carry HPV since vaccinations were introduced in 2006. There has been a 64 percent decrease in a specific strain of HPV type among females aged 14 to 19 and a 34 percent decrease among those aged 20 to 24.

The vaccine is a virtually painless and very effective method of preventing cancer-causing HPV. Yet many people still aren’t vaccinated by the time they leave for college.

The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) figures less than half of females and less than a quarter of males have finished the three-dose series by age 17. But the CDC also estimates nearly 27,000 HPV-associated cancers are diagnosed in men and women every year.

How is this number still so high when there is a simple vaccination available? Some parents are understandably wary of vaccines. And because it involves talking to parents about their teenagers’ and pre-teens’ sexual activity, some doctors may be reluctant to press the vaccination.

I remember my dad being pretty nonchalant about my vaccination. He was in the exam room with me, since I was a minor, and in retrospect, I think he just wanted to get the whole deal over with.

The issue was when I got home and told my mom I needed two more shots of this vaccination. She was livid.

She thought this immunization would promote early sexual activity. Similar to many parents, she didn’t and still doesn’t want to think her child will have sex.

While I did get all three vaccinations, it was met with headaches.

But since much of my audience is in college, I suggest getting vaccinated. If you’re 18 and older, you don’t need a parent’s permission for vaccinations.

The science is clear: The HPV vaccine is proven safe and effective, has no serious side effects and it doesn’t cause fertility problems.

In order to practice safe sex, one must take all the precautionary routes possible. it’s not enough to just use birth control. You can get either of the two vaccines, Ceravix or Gardasil, from your doctor or at Syracuse’s own Crouse Hospital.

Isabella Ong is a sophomore television, radio and film major. Her column appears weekly in Pulp. She can be reached on Twitter @isabella_ong

Published on March 2, 2016 at 8:26 pm