As cervical cancer rates fall, HPV is causing more throat and mouth cancers in men — why?
HPV vaccination is helping knock back cervical cancer rates, but meanwhile, mouth and throat cancers caused by the virus are up in men. Here's what to know.
Human papillomavirus (HPV) is causing more throat and mouth cancers (oropharyngeal cancers) in men primarily because of biological differences in how men handle the virus, changes in sexual practices, and a long latency period—while cervical cancer rates drop due to successful screening and vaccination in women.
Why Men Are More Affected
- Higher Infection Rates: Men have a higher prevalence of oral HPV infections and are less effective at clearing the virus naturally compared to women.
- Anatomical and Immune Factors: The tissue in the back of the throat, including the tonsils and base of the tongue, has deep crevices that trap the virus. Men's immune systems also tend to clear oral HPV slower.
- Shifting Sexual Practices: Increased rates of transmission via oral sex over recent decades have led to higher exposure to high-risk strains like HPV-16.
- Decades-Long Latency: HPV can lie dormant in throat cells for 20 to 30 years. The men diagnosed today (mostly middle-aged and older) were exposed decades ago, long before HPV vaccines existed.
Why Cervical Cancer Rates Are Falling
- Routine Screening: Pap smears and HPV testing allow doctors to catch and treat precancerous cervical changes in women before they turn into cancer.
- Targeted Vaccination: Widespread HPV vaccination programs have heavily driven down cervical cancer rates in women, but older cohorts of men missed out on these vaccines when they were young. Unlike women, there is also no routine, effective screening test for throat and mouth cancer