A rise in the occurrence of the neck and head cancers related to the human papilloma virus has health professionals concerned. The correlation of the two ailments is assumed to be caused by oral sex. The rise is so significant that researchers at Duke University reported that 1in 3 cases of head and neck cancers are related to HPV.
However the entire field does not buy into the theory of this link. Opposers of the idea note that the virus is quite common among people, and that this link, (which has only been noticed within the past few years), implies that people are carrying out more oral sex today than they had decades ago. A Spokesperson for the Guttmacher Institute stated that there is no data that supports the theory of decades-long increase in oral sex practices.
In the previous years, there has been little proof that oral sex can be linked to such cancers. However, studies now show that HPV-related infections have a direct connection with head and neck cancers. In 2007, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study linking oral cancers and multiple oral sex partners. A national survey found that nearly 90 percent of American males between 25 and 44 engage in oral sex with female partners. The same study found 88 percent of females in the same age group were carrying out oral sex, as well. Whether the rate has increased or not, researchers find that sexually active people in today’s society are performing oral sex acts with more partners and are beginning these practices at much younger ages than in the past, which strengthens the argument for a link.
The positive aspect to this link between HPV and head and neck cancers is that doctors have noted that HPV-related head and neck cancers, respond better to treatment than other forms of cancer. The best protection against HPV is to abstain from any sexual contact or to be vaccinated with the HPV vaccination prior to becoming sexually active, be it oral, or otherwise. Some health officials argue that men should receive the vaccine as well, but it is not commonplace as of yet.
