Pressroom

Source: Reuters

By: Kelland, Kate

09/04/2012

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) recommends that all girls in Europe receive the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. Although 19 of 29 countries in the European Union have rolled out HPV vaccine programs, only Portugal and Britain reported that more than 80 percent of girls between ages 10 and 14 were immunized in 2010. In some countries, the HPV vaccination rate is as low as 17 percent. The ECDC noted that research has also indicated that the HPV vaccine can help protect boys from certain types of cancer, the recommendations do not yet seek to include young men in vaccination programs.