HPV vaccine coverage very low among Greek boys

Only a very small percentage of boys in Greece have received the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.

Despite the fact that this vaccine is one of the two for cancer prevention, less than one in 10 boys aged 9 and older have had it. And this is despite the fact that since April 2022 it has been included in the National Vaccination Program and is therefore administered free of charge.

Moreover, the World Health Organization established a target of 90% HPV vaccination coverage among girls by 2030, yet just 43% of girls have received the vaccine, well behind the target of eliminating cervical cancer.

The main causes of these low rates are either parental ignorance or erroneous information.

“We have the impression that the information has not reached parents about the vaccination recommendations for boys,” Panhellenic Federation of Freelance Pediatricians President Kostas Daloukas said.