First Discovery of HPV: Unravelling the Mystery of Cervical Cancer - Research Paper

Introduction

Scientists in 1956 first discovered human Papillomavirus. Harold Zur Hausen learned about HPV and cloned cervical cancer to HPV 16 and HPV 18 in 1984 (Seo et al., 2017). Hausen also contributed to the making of vaccines of HPV type 6 (Seo et al., 2017). "Pap test has decreased the overall incidence and mortality of cervical cancer; this disease remains the eighth most common cancer among women in the United States" (Hirth et al., 2013). Human Papillomavirus is named in that manner due to strain that brings warts, also called papillomas.

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The Population at Risk for HPV

Researchers have recruited races numerous times to compare the differences in women with a higher risk of HPV. These races have included African American, Hispanic, and White American women. Researchers have come to the decision that African American women have rates of cervical cancer and mortality higher than white women, Alberts et al. (2017). Researchers at Duke Medicine recruited 326 European American and 113 African American female college freshmen from Columbia South Carolina, Alberts et al. (2017). According to the source, the test was to compare the clearance of the women with a higher risk of HPV infection between ethnicities Alberts et al. (2017). The researchers tested the women every six months through HPV testing, pap smear Alberts et al. (2017). Social Determinants of Health is the main factor that takes place in this unsolved case of HPV. Not many women are stable enough to continue to get these pap screening done with their doctors. Many women are uninsured, have low income, and some women do not care about their health. Stated by the source, "Socioeconomic factors and access to healthcare have been postulated as possible explanations for the disparity in incidence and mortality rates of cervical cancer between different ethnic groups," Alberts et al. (2017). That is why African American women have the highest case of cervical cancer than white women, Alberts et al. (2017).Social and Behavioral Factors that Contribute to HPV

Behaviorally and socially risk factors primarily affect the acquirement for HPV infection. The risk factors are necessary for consideration for HPV vaccination strategy. Some of the social and behavioral factors that contribute to HPV acquisition include the characteristics of the sexual history of the women and substance use. Sexual history entails the number of sexual companions the woman have had, the characteristics of the sexual companions, use of contraceptives, and parity. Substance use history may include alcohol use, cigarettes, and other illicit drugs.

Of the sexual history factor, an increasing count of lifetime sexual companion and having had a current, different sexual companion are two elements which have been constantly related with an increased risk of HPV infection. Moreover, being with a sexual companion who is 1.5 to 2 years older is also linked with an increased risk of HPV infection acquisition.

On the other hand, it has been difficult to assess the effect, impact, and relationship of the use of the substance with its risk on the acquisition of HPV infection and other related diseases. Current or past history of smoking of cigarettes has been linked with HPV infection acquisition, progression to precancerous lesions, and cervical cancer in some of the studies. However, most of the studies have failed to support this connection. Far fewer investigations have surveyed the role of the use of illegal drug and acquisition of HPV infection as well as related diseases, and results of these examinations additionally show mixed associations. One of the reasons these affiliations might be so shifted is because substance use may in certainty be a marker for other, unmeasured, sexual practices that impact the risk of HPV disease.

Contributions by Public Health Agencies in Delivering Public Health Services for HPV

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers worldwide technical assistance for implementing and evaluating of the HPV vaccination pilot projects, programs, and the laboratory activities related to HPV assessment. CDC has partnered worldwide in developing global screening manuals as well as a recommendation, creating standardized tools for evaluation, and providing expertise in monitoring the outcomes.

Through Gardasil Access Program (GAP), Merck & Co. Inc. has pledged in donating Gardasil [Human Papillomavirus Quadrivalent (Types 6, 11, 16 and 18) Vaccine majorly to countries of low and middle income (Anderson et al., 2016). The main objective of GAP is to enable institutions in countries that qualify as low and middle-income earners to acquire experience in operation and implementation of the HPV vaccination program, to support the development of adolescent models of immunization (Anderson et al., 2016).

References

Alberts, C. J., Michel, A., Bruisten, S., Snijder, M. B., Prins, M., Waterboer, T., & van der Loeff, M. S. (2017). High-risk human papillomavirus seroprevalence in men and women of six different ethnicities in Amsterdam, the Netherlands: The HELIUS study. Papillomavirus Research, 3, 57-65. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5883189/

Anderson, E. L., Banister, C. E., Kassler, S., Messersmith, A., Pirisi, L., Creek, K. E., & Wyatt, M. D. (2016). Human papillomavirus type 16 L2 DNA methylation in exfoliated cervical cells from college-age women. Journal of lower genital tract disease, 20(4), 332. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5037005/

Brusselaers, N., Shrestha, S., Van De Wijgert, J., & Verstraelen, H. (2018). Vaginal dysbiosis, and the risk of human papillomavirus and cervical cancer: systematic review and meta-analysis. American journal of obstetrics and gynecology. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30550767

Hirth, J. M., Kuo, Y. F., Starkey, J. M., Rupp, R. E., Laz, T. H., Rahman, M., & Berenson, A. B. (2019). Regional variations in human papillomavirus prevalence across time in NHANES (2003-2014). Vaccine. Retrieved from https://researchexperts.utmb.edu/en/persons/jacqueline-hirth/publications/

Li, W., Meng, Y., Wang, Y., Cheng, X., Wang, C., Xiao, S., ... & Xu, S. (2019). Association of age and viral factors with high-risk HPV persistence: A retrospective follow-up study. Gynecologic Oncology. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31242966

Seo, S. J., Rawlinson, D., Messersmith, A. R., Creek, K. E., Pirisi, L. A., & Spiryda, L. B. (2017). Concurrent Infections With Human Papillomavirus and Cervical Intraepithelial Lesions: What Is the Relationship?. Journal of Clinical Gynecology and Obstetrics, 6(2), 29-33. Retrieved from http://www.jcgo.org/index.php/jcgo/article/view/437/290