Through vaccination, we can protect a child or later a young person from a deadly disease, – said Dr. Pawel Grzesiowski, chief sanitary inspector in “Facti po factach” on TVN24, about the need for vaccination against the HPV virus. Anja Rubik, head of the SexEd.pl foundation, which campaigns for these vaccines, added that the statistics on the incidence of cervical cancer in Poland are “horrifying”.
From September 1, 2024, vaccination is available as part of the universal HPV vaccination program for children aged 9 to 14 years. Parents must have their consent. The HPV virus, among other things, is responsible for cervical cancer.
Anya Rubik: the statistics are scary
Anja Rubik, founder and president of the SexEd.pl foundation, which runs the vaccination campaign, and Dr. Pawel Grzesiowski, chief sanitary inspector, talked about how important HPV vaccination is in “Fact po Factach” on TVN24.
Rubik said that “the matter is very simple and clear”. – The statistics in Poland are terrible. About six women a day learn about cervical and uterine cancer. Every day, four women die from this disease. And we can prevent it in a simple way, he said.
– The SexEd.pl foundation started this campaign at the beginning of the year, but most importantly, we developed a pilot vaccination program in schools for the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Science. The program is now being rolled out across Poland, it started in September. And I will start traveling around Poland to get people's support for this program, that is, the support of local governments, the support of schools, school principals, to promote this topic as much as possible, she continued.
Anya Rubik: cervical cancer statistics are scary
Dr. Grzesiowski: vaccine can protect against deadly disease
Dr. Grzesiowski said, “Through the vaccine, we can eliminate or minimize the incidence of very serious disease.” He added that cervical cancer is only one of the cancers associated with HPV infection.
– Let's remember that these are other cancers in women as well as in men that are related to the widely understood area of reproductive organs or genitals, but these are head and neck cancers that also have chronic HPV infection. mechanism. That is why we are talking about vaccinating boys and girls, not only in conditions of cervical cancer, – continued the chief sanitary doctor.
– So this is very important information that we must always repeat that we can protect a child or a young person from a deadly disease through vaccination, an activity that actually requires two small injections, – he emphasized.
Dr. Grzesiowski: the vaccine can protect against the deadly disease TVN24
Dr. Grzesiowski: vaccination is a preventive measure
The guests of the program also talked about when it is better to get vaccinated against HPV.
– We encourage young people to vaccinate, because this vaccine is better absorbed and it is better to vaccinate before starting sexual intercourse. However, you can get HPV in other ways, said Anya Rubik.
Dr. Grzesiowski said vaccination is a preventative measure that focuses on what could happen in the future. – So we don't think about a nine-year-old having sex, we only vaccinate him when he is ready to be vaccinated, to the extent that his immune system reacts, but we do it for the future . , for the next 20-30-50 years – added Dr. Grzesiowski.
Dr. Grzesiowski: the vaccine can protect against the deadly disease TVN24
The case of a four-year-old child who was infected by his parents
The health inspector also explains why it is important to get vaccinated even if someone has already been diagnosed with HPV.
– First, the presence of a virus in us does not mean that we have cancer. This process takes many years and supporting the immune system through vaccination can even change the course of the disease. Secondly, we have a type of virus, and the vaccine protects against many other oncogenic viruses, the doctor noted.
– Because diagnosis has improved, we are now seeing infections in young children, in children younger than those with registered vaccines. We now have a case that is likely to be published, a four-year-old child who was infected by an infected parent. He explained that there was no connection with sexual activity.
– The virus is easily transmitted by contact, and we should also think about it in the families of infected persons, if there is a child there, perhaps this vaccine should be administered even earlier than the age of nine – added the guest of TVN24.
Dr. Grzesiowski: we have a four-year-old boy who contracted HPV from his parents TVN24
Main photo source: TVN24
