“Prevention is the answer, and prevention is vaccination. It’s that simple.”

TheoryLab

HPV, or Human Papillomavirus, is a common virus that can cause six types of cancer. While there is no treatment for HPV, there is a vaccine that can prevent it. The HPV vaccine works best when given between ages 9 and 12, for boys and girls, and it is safe, effective, and long-lasting. Jenny Grandis, MD, is at the forefront of translational research in head and neck cancer. She joined the podcast to talk about the prevalence of HPV-associated head and neck cancers, why they can be hard to detect, why the side effects can be so devastating, and why prevention through vaccination is so important. She was joined on the podcast by Adrienne Murr, a high school student who recently completed a summer internship in the Grandis lab. Ms. Murr talked about what she took away from her experience in the lab. And she offered helpful advice for parents talking to their children about HPV vaccination. She wrote an op-ed on the subject titled, "HPV is a threat to your children. Vaccines are not.” Jenny Grandis, MD, is the Robert K. Werbe Distinguished Professor in Head and Neck Cancer in the Department of Otolaryngology at the University of California, San Francisco. She was named an American Cancer Society Clinical Research Professor for her seminal contributions to the field. Adrienne Murr is a senior at Tamalpais High School in San Francisco, California. Fore more information about HPV vaccination, visit: https://www.cancer.org/healthy/hpv-vaccine.html 5:18 – On the association of head and neck cancers with infection by the human papillomavirus (HPV) 6:52 – The increasing prevalence of HPV-associated head and neck cancers 9:51 – Why HPV-associated head and neck cancers are hard to detect 11:15 – How they are treated, and why the side effects can be problematic 14:07 – Prevention is the answer 15:28 – On why the vaccine needs to be administered at ages 9-12 18:14 – What it was like for Adrienne to work in Jenny’s lab 19:54 – How her experience in the lab changed her perspective on the HPV vaccine 21:59 – Why it is so important for girls AND boys to get the vaccine 25:42 – How parents can talk to their children about HPV vaccination, and some helpful resources to help parents communicate the importance of the vaccine 28:51 – On the strange but ultimately delightful experience of mentoring a high school student during a pandemic 30:57 – How her experience interning in Dr. Grandis’s lab informed an op-ed Adrienne wrote, "HPV is a threat to your children. Vaccines are not.” 33:26 – How funding from the American Cancer Society has impacted Dr. Grandis and her research 36:30 – Wonderful advice from Adrienne for other young women interested in a research career