Eric Adjei Boakye

Awareness of the link between HPV and cancer according to cancer type and gender in the US from 2014–2020

While sociodemographic differences in the population awareness of the link between HPV and HPV-associated cancers have been observed in the US, it is unclear how cancer type and gender contribute to these differences. We examined variations in US adults' awareness of the link between HPV and HPV-related cancers over time according to gender. We used data from the 2014-2020 Health Information National Trends Survey. Exposure was gender (men versus women), and outcomes were self-reported awareness of the causal link between HPV and cancers (cervical, anal, penile and oral cancer). A total of 10,933 participants were included in this study. Awareness of the link between HPV and cervical cancer was high (77.6% in 2014) but decreased by 7.4% between 2014 and 2020. In contrast, awareness of the link between HPV and anal, oral, and penile cancers was low (around 30% for each cancer type) and remained stable between 2014 and 2020. From 2014 to 2020, gender difference gradually widened for cervical cancer (with higher awareness among women versus men) while it gradually faded for anal cancer (with higher awareness among men versus women). For oral and penile cancers, the gender difference that was observed in 2014 (with higher awareness among men versus women) gradually narrowed and then reversed (with higher awareness among women versus men). These findings emphasize the importance of implementing novel and targeted interventions to enhance public knowledge of the HPV-cancer link, particularly for HPV-associated non-cervical cancers. Public health initiatives should focus on developing gender- and cancer type-specific educational campaigns aimed at mitigating misinformation around HPV and HPV-related cancers.

College Students’ Awareness of the Link Between Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and HPV-Associated Cancers

We describe the level of awareness of the link between HPV and HPV-associated cancers and identify demographic and lifestyle factors associated with awareness. This was a cross-sectional study of college students (n = 862) at a public Midwestern university conducted between February and May 2021. The outcomes were student's awareness-accessed by asking students if they knew whether HPV was causally link with anal, cervical, vaginal, oropharyngeal, vulvar, and penile cancers. Logistic regression models estimated the association between sociodemographic and sexual behavior and awareness of the link between HPV and HPV-associated cancers. Approximately 70% were aware that HPV causes cervical, 53% were aware HPV causes vaginal, 40% were aware HPV causes vulvar cancers, 39% were aware HPV causes oropharyngeal, 38% were aware HPV causes penile, and 34% were aware HPV causes anal cancers. In multivariable analyses, men were less likely to be aware that HPV causes vaginal (aOR = 0.42, 95% CI 0.30-0.59) or vulvar cancers (aOR = 0.54, 95% CI 0.38-0.77) compared to women. Compared with sexually naïve students, those who had have oral and vaginal sex were more likely to be aware that HPV causes anal (aOR = 1.98, 95% CI 1.17-3.34), penile (aOR = 1.82, 95% CI 1.11-2.97), vaginal (aOR = 1.81, 95% CI 1.14-2.88), or vulvar (aOR = 2.05, 95% CI 1.24-3.40) cancers. Awareness of the link between HPV and HPV-associated cancers was low, except cervical. This underscores the need for more tailored interventions to increase knowledge about HPV and its association with cancer. Increasing students' levels of awareness may impact HPV vaccine uptake.