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More than 100 public health organizations and experts have joined with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and its “Path to a Bright Future” campaign helping spread the word and increase the rates of on-time HPV vaccination.

The campaign launched March 4, International HPV Awareness Day, and focuses on both education and advocacy.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one out of every four people, about 80 million, are infected with the HPV virus; of those millions, nearly 37,000 will be diagnosed with HPV cancers this year. The HPV vaccine has been proven to prevent 90% of HPV cancers, including cervical, vaginal, vulvar, anal, penile and oral/throat cancers.

The vaccine is most effective when administered between ages 9 and 12. Despite these promising stats, HPV vaccinations are lower than the national Healthy People 2030 goal of 80%. Of course, COVID-19, is partly to blame for the negative impact on the number of vaccines given—it’s estimated 3.5 million HPV vaccinations were missed, with research suggesting it will take up to 10 years to close this gap.

For St. Jude and its staff, treating cancer in children is what they do, so anything that can be done to prevent it is a top priority.

“St. Jude is the only National Cancer Institute designated cancer center focused exclusively on pediatric cancers, and my colleagues work very hard every day to save the lives of children who are affected with pediatric cancers that we don’t yet know how to prevent,” St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital’s HPV cancer prevention program director Heather Brandt, Ph.D., said.  “We’re committed to preventing cancers and it starts with kids today to get them protected from cancers that they could develop in the future.”

The push is aimed at parents and caregivers of kids aged 9 to 12 or whomever is in charge of decision-making when it comes to vaccines. There is also an effort to ensure HCPs are on board with recommending the vaccine to their patients and parents.

“We know that a provider recommendation is the single most important factor in whether or not a child has been vaccinated. So misinformation, disinformation, lack of a provider recommendation, lack of overall awareness and understanding, those are some of the factors,” Brandt said.

There are also regional issues that crop up; the southern U.S. has the lowest HPV vaccine rates, and Brandt says some of that stems from religious concerns such as the vaccine being perceived as permission for sexual activity.

The cornerstone of the campaign is the Path to a Bright Future page on St. Jude’s website, but the hospital is also promoting the info across all its social channels plus a series of targeted social media ads on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

The project is not affiliated with any pharma in any way. Currently in the U.S., Merck’s Gardasil 9 is the only HPV vaccine available.