Yet another reason to use protection...

I also agree the choice of pictures is disturbing... I'm assuming they wanted something they thought would catch people's attention

I actually don't think it was a deliberate choice...I'm pretty sure that Google just picks up certain key words (oral sex, etc) and automatically picks a picture related to those words.

oh -I thought you meant it was a picture the author(s) of the article had selected. Nevermind then...

So, because this is something men can have a problem with now, does that mean they will finally approve the HPV vaccine?

Finally, I have an excuse.

god everytime I read stuff like this I can't understand how not EVERYONE has stds and sex related illness.for that matter I can't believe how I got off scott free after going through years of one night stands.

It's also worth pointing out that - contrary to the image - fellatio is not something only women do!

Uh. So that article doesn't say how to test for it or nipping it in the bud and I'm a little scared. I had a radical hyst 2 years ago almost to the date for cervical cancer. Further, does it note any significant difference for spit or swallow?

Since HPV is contracted from skin to skin contact, not just bodily fluids, I couldn't imagine that spitting or swallowing would much matter.

Um, so once you hit the threshold of six you might as well just go for it, right?

"Further, does it note any significant difference for spit or swallow?"

No, but I'm sure it makes a difference whether you use protection.

I have a big feeling that the reason they are not making the HPV vaccine available to males has little to do with safety and efficacy.

Seriously, if we can just frame HPV as the equal opportunity killer it is, we have a better chance.

I don't want to sound like "Think of teh mens!" because that's really not intentional. Men can easily transmit it to women or other men so they should also be tested, vaccinated and educated.

"Sorry, honey, not tonight. I'm over my quota for tonsil pokin'."

The authors said they are working on ways to detect the problem early and are collaborating with the makers of the HPV vaccine Gardasil to see if it curbs oral as well as cervical malignancies.

Glad to see they talked about the vaccine in the article. Too bad they don't already have a clear reading on whether it will be at all effective for oral as well as cervical cancers.

Slightly off subject: I can't find the link right now, but I remember about a year ago reading an article about a study showing that having oral sex at least twice a week over the course of a few years corresponds with a significantly lower breast cancer risk. I wonder if the two effects cancel each other out? :)

I was curious as to how significant this risk really is. According to the cdc (if I am reading these stats correctly):

http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/npcr/npcrpdfs/US_Cancer_Statistics_2003_Incidence_and_Mortality.pdf
(pdf) pages 26-29

the incidence or oropharyngeal cancer per 100,000 is .7 for men and .2 for women. In other words it appears that is one of the rarest forms of cancer on the chart.

This really falls into the category of-if you buy 6 six lottery tickets your chances of winning are 6 times greater than just one. True but kind of meaningless.

There are a lot of risk factors in life, I think I won't sweat this one too much yet.

Thanks Kyle. I have been freaking out all day today and all paranoid that I have a sore throat and am seeing/feeling weirdness in my mouth.

(I was *joking* about the spit/swallow, btw, but I feel embarrassed that I didn't realize it was a skin thing, not a jizz/fluid thing.)

They just said oral sex in general, but I do wonder whether fellatio or cunniligus is worse in that regard. I suspect the former, based on general patterns, but I'd still like to know.

"Slightly off subject: I can't find the link right now, but I remember about a year ago reading an article about a study showing that having oral sex at least twice a week over the course of a few years corresponds with a significantly lower breast cancer risk. I wonder if the two effects cancel each other out? :)"

I'm really sorry to say, but you've been had. There was this unfunny fake article from CNN or some news source that someone doctored, and it was being sent around to women in a sort of "Look, you SHOULD give me head!" sort of way.

http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/f/fellatio.htm

"Slightly off subject: I can't find the link right now, but I remember about a year ago reading an article about a study showing that having oral sex at least twice a week over the course of a few years corresponds with a significantly lower breast cancer risk. I wonder if the two effects cancel each other out? :)"

I'm really sorry to say, but you've been had. There was this unfunny fake article from CNN or some news source that someone doctored, and it was being sent around to women in a sort of "Look, you SHOULD give me head!" sort of way.

http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/f/fellatio.htm

Ugh, double comment. My submission didn't appear to be responding... twice. Sorry :(

Correct me if I am wrong, but this what I gather from this study:

1 The act of oral sex isn't linked to cancer.

2 Semen and vaginal fluids aren't linked to cancer.

3 The HPV is linked to cancer.

4 People can be tested to see if they are infected with HPV.

5 There is a vaccination for HPV.

6 Both men and women, straight or gay, are equally at risk.

4 People can be tested to see if they are infected with HPV.

Actually, there isn't an FDA approved HPV test for men.
So, you know... it'd be hard to get tested if you're a man.

Why isn't there a test for men, you ask?

According to the CDC: "there is no clear health benefit to knowing if men have this virus, since HPV is unlikely to affect their health and cannot be treated. For most men, there would be no need to treat HPV, even if treatment were available, since it usually goes away on its own."

Because, you know... we men don't need to know if we have it. It certainly wouldn't be beneficial to know for, say, the sake of our partners.

Assholes.

But aren't us men at risk of throat cancer if we go down on our women (or men for that matter). My wife would divorce me in a minute if I told her I no longer wanted to go down on her. This is sexist (against men). We have a right to know if we are infecting our wives (or husbands) or girlfriends (or boyfriends) with HPV, because the HPV we transfer to them could give us throat cancer later. We all need to write our congressmen and demand that a test for HPV be available for men ASAP. If I have infected my wife, I want to know, without having to get her tested first.

dmrnj -- that's pretty funny...I feel better that I got the article from a girlfriend.

Roymac -- that's incredible and infuriating. No wonder that a third of sexually active people have it -- duh. Aren't certain strains of HPV also the primary cause of warts? I mean, I know they're different strains and all, but it seems like guys would kind of want to know what's going on, er, down there.

"Because, you know... we men don't need to know if we have it. It certainly wouldn't be beneficial to know for, say, the sake of our partners.

"Assholes."

It's an especially strange attitude given that so many boys are already vaccinated against rubella for the sake of protecting pregnant women...

" "there is no clear health benefit to knowing if men have this virus, since HPV is unlikely to affect their health and cannot be treated. For most men, there would be no need to treat HPV, even if treatment were available, since it usually goes away on its own."

Ugh, that makes me so mad.

I had a stupid fling with this older motorcycle guy a few years ago (he was perfectly lovely, but that doesn't mean it wasn't stupid)

We had lots of unprotected sex, but he had recently been tested for STDs (he had a report from the clinic, so I knew he wasn't lying) which didn't protect against the pregnancy factor, but did give me some form of security.

8 months later I go in for my pap smear, and guess who gave me HPV? And yes, due to my sexual history it was definitely him. Someone who had had an STD check.

The fact that they haven't developed an 'effective test' yet is ludicrous. Sure, he's probably fine, but the two colposcopy's I've had have been the most ridiculously painful experiences of my life.

I want those scientists to get crackin' on that test. Now.

" "there is no clear health benefit to knowing if men have this virus, since HPV is unlikely to affect their health and cannot be treated. For most men, there would be no need to treat HPV, even if treatment were available, since it usually goes away on its own."

Ugh, that makes me so mad.

I had a stupid fling with this older motorcycle guy a few years ago (he was perfectly lovely, but that doesn't mean it wasn't stupid)

We had lots of unprotected sex, but he had recently been tested for STDs (he had a report from the clinic, so I knew he wasn't lying) which didn't protect against the pregnancy factor, but did give me some form of security.

8 months later I go in for my pap smear, and guess who gave me HPV? And yes, due to my sexual history it was definitely him. Someone who had had an STD check.

The fact that they haven't developed an 'effective test' yet is ludicrous. Sure, he's probably fine, but the two colposcopy's I've had have been the most ridiculously painful experiences of my life.

I want those scientists to get crackin' on that test. Now.

"there is no clear health benefit to knowing if men have this virus, since HPV is unlikely to affect their health and cannot be treated. For most men, there would be no need to treat HPV, even if treatment were available, since it usually goes away on its own."

Ugh, that is so infuriating. I got HPV off a guy who showed me his recent STD scan- a clean bill of health (and yes, due to my sexual history I do know it was from him.)

I have since had to have 2 colposcopys, which have been the most excruciating experiences of my life (to those of you who may need to have one: I've been assured that the excruciating pain I feel is incredibly rare- the first nurse I had said I had the most sensitive cervix she'd ever encountered, and she'd been in the business for 20 years.)

I want those scientists working on an 'effective, reliable way to collect a sample of male genital skin cells' RIGHT NOW.

Otherwise, my over-sensitive cervix might start plotting a suitable revenge.

Sorry about the double posting everyone, and if my other posting goes through (because I thought the other one didn't ) I'm sorry about that too! My computer does not get along with this website.

HPV types 6 and 11 cause 90% of genital warts. HPV types 16 and 18 cause 70% of cervical cancers. The subtypes that cause warts do not also cause cancer (from Ny state dept of health). The Merck vaccine protects against these four subtypes. HPV 16 is the one linked to oral cancer in the recent Canadian study in the news (Pintos, et al, 2007, Oral Oncology). Interestingly, the same type of HPV is found in a high percentage of certain cancers of the anal canal (Tachezy, et al, 2007, APMIS).

So that's it, no foolin' around for anyone! Just kidding. Use protection, sexually transmitted diseases transmit regardless of the specific sex act involved.

Yes I am a science geek, and I like it that way. However, I have no background in medical statistics so someone else will have to explain all the numbers if you track down the references above.

and for roro8o - boys are given the vaccine for rubella to help prevent the spread of rubella to pregnent women. All people, regardless of age or sex can get rubella if not vaccinated, and it is usually just a rash and a fever for a few days. It is only really dangerous to the fetuses of pregnant women and cause a wide variety of damage to the fetus. But as you pointed out, for effective vaccination of a population, you'd have to give men the HPV jab as well. It's one I would want in my vaccination list.

(and yes, there are some interesting feminist interpretations of my post but it's getting late and I have an oral exam tuesday - no not that kind.)