Special to the Sydenham Current
If there was a vaccine against cancer wouldn’t you want your child to have it?
Let’s help protect our youth. Ontario is expanding its free immunization program to help protect more students from human papillomavirus (HPV) infection and related cancers. Beginning in September 2016, Ontario will offer the cancer-fighting HPV vaccine to boys as well as girls in grade 7. Female students beginning grade 8 in the 2016-2017 school year will still be able to receive the HPV vaccine in school-based clinics.
Expanding the school-based HPV immunization program to include boys and offering the vaccine to students in grade 7 falls in line with current scientific and expert recommendations. HPV is a common virus and can lead to different kinds of cancer in females and males. The HPV vaccine can best prevent HPV-related diseases and cancers if received at a young age. Three out of four Chatham-Kent citizens become infected with HPV during their lives. HPV is spread by skin to skin contact during intimate activity with an infected person. Some people never get symptoms but they will still carry the virus and can pass it on to others. HPV is highly contagious. Prevention is the best treatment.
Consents will be distributed through the schools in early September. Immunization clinics are held in elementary schools in Chatham-Kent beginning in October and again in the spring. For the majority of students who are eligible for the HPV vaccine, the vaccine is given in a series of two shots six months apart. Home schooled students may also qualify for the HPV vaccine. For non-eligible students the vaccine can be purchased privately. For more information about the HPV vaccine speak to your health care provider or contact the Chatham-Kent Public Health Unit at 519.355.1071 ext. 5900.
