PSU student nurses share message about HPV

Graduate student nurses at Pittsburg State University want PSU students to know about the genital human papillomavirus (HPV) and a recently approved vaccine that could prevent the spread of the disease and the cervical cancer that it causes. The student nurses will staff an informational table in the first floor lobby of the Overman Student Center from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Nov. 7-9.

Student organizers of the informational campaign say it is particularly important to get the message to college-age students because they are in a high risk group for contracting and spreading this common sexually transmitted disease. To help increase student interest, the graduate student nurses will have drawings for a wide range of prizes ranging from meals at local restaurants, to haircuts and even an Apple iPod.

In June of this year, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first HPV vaccine. The vaccine has been licensed for use with females between the ages of 9 and 26. FDA officials said the vaccine offers protection from infection and diseases associated with HPV types that cause approximately 70 percent of cervical cancers. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has recommended that the vaccine be given routinely to females 11-12 years of age and used with girls as young as 9 at the discretion of their health care provider.

For information about the graduate nurses HPV information efforts, please call the PSU Department of Nursing at 620-235-4431.

For information about HPV:
National HPV & Cervical Cancer Prevention Resource Center Website at www.ashastd.org/hpv/hpv_overview.cfm
Or
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at
www.cdc.gov/std/HPV/default.htm

---Pitt State---