HPV vaccination rates among active duty and veterans are half that of the civilian population.

Active-duty military and veterans are twice as likely as civilians to develop cancer causing HPV infections.

HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer, which occurs predominantly in males, is rising more rapidly among veterans than civilians.

Over 90% of all of these HPV-related cancers are preventable through HPV vaccination.

Resources on HPV in the military

• Feasibility and sustainability of a nurse-led intervention to integrate HPV vaccination into medical processing for active-duty Soldiers. Penick E, Grabert BK, Stockton E, Prentice-Dunn H, Ward M, Kirk T, Gilkey MB. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2022 Dec 30

• Human Papillomavirus Vaccination Prevalence and Disproportionate Cancer Burden Among US Veterans. Chidambaram S, Chang SH, Sandulache VC, Mazul AL, Zevallos JP. JAMA Oncol. 2023 May

• Factors Associated with Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Initiation and Compliance Among U.S. Military Service Members. Rayna K Matsuno, Julia Seay, Ben Porter, Karen Tannenbaum, Steven Warner, Natalie Wells, Military Medicine, Volume 188, Issue 7-8, July/August 2023, Pages e1926–e1934

• Federal Practioner, Data Trends. July 2023. www.fedprac-digital.com/federalpractitioner/federal_health_care_data_trends_2023/MobilePagedReplica.action?pm=2&folio=Cover#pg1

• Zevallos JP, Kramer JR, Sandulache VC, Massa ST, Hartman CM, Mazul AL, Wahle BM, Gerndt SP, Sturgis EM, Chiao EY. National trends in oropharyngeal cancer incidence and survival within the Veterans Affairs Health Care System. Head Neck. 2021 Jan;43(1):108-115. doi: 10.1002/hed.26465. Epub 2020 Sep 12. PMID: 32918302; PMCID: PMC8060873.

• Daly CM, Hansen SL, Kwon PO, Roberts TA. Prevalence of Human Papillomavirus Genotypes and Abnormal Pap Smears Among Women in the Military Health System. J Community Health. 2018 Jun;43(3):441-447. doi: 10.1007/s10900-017-0447-z. PMID: 29168085.

• Mazul AL, Hartman CM, Mowery YM, Kramer JR, White DL, Royse KE, Raychaudhury S, Sandulache VC, Ahmed ST, Zevallos JP, Richardson PA, Sikora AG, Chiao EY. Risk and incidence of head and neck cancers in veterans living with HIV and matched HIV-negative veterans. Cancer. 2022 Sep 15;128(18):3310-3318. doi: 10.1002/cncr.34387. Epub 2022 Jul 22. PMID: 35867552; PMCID: PMC10650941.

• Saxena K, Dawson RS, Cyhaniuk A, Bello T, Janjan N. Clinical and economic burden of HPV-related cancers in the US veteran population. J Med Econ. 2022 Jan-Dec;25(1):299-308. doi: 10.1080/13696998.2022.2041855. PMID: 35156867.

• Nsouli-Maktabi H, Ludwig SL, Yerubandi UD, Gaydos JC. Incidence of genital warts among U.S. service members before and after the introduction of the quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine. MSMR. 2013 Feb;20(2):17-20. PMID: 23461306.