SAVING A LIFE THREE SHOTS AT A TIME

Sex.

Every teen in high school knows what that word means, and nearly half of them have experienced it firsthand.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, 46 percent of all teenagers in the United States between the ages of 15 and 19 have had sexual encounters at least once.

Many teens fail to realize the consequences of having unprotected sex, and this ignorance can lead to the contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, such as the human papillomavirus.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, HPV is a common virus that equally affects both males and females. Local physicians agree that both sexes are vulnerable to the infection.

"HPV is contracted through sexual intercourse," said Dr. Tikva Butler from the Desert Inn Women's Care Center. "It can lead to cervical cancer in girls, and it can produce warts in the genital areas of both sexes, among other things."

In 2005, the CDC estimated that about 20 million people in the United States had HPV and that at least 50 percent of all sexually active people contract the STD during their lifetime.

HPV is a virus that oftentimes does not show any signs or symptoms, so in many cases, the diagnosis can be a surprise.

"Girls don't usually know if they have HPV until they get a Pap smear, which detects the virus in their system," Butler said.

Gardasil, which was created and distributed by Merck & Co. in October 2007, comes in three doses and was made to protect women from the four most dangerous types of HPV: types 6, 11, 16 and 18.

These strands of HPV cause cervical cancer; abnormal and precancerous cervical, vaginal and vulvar lesions; and genital warts.

"I think more kids are becoming sexually active at younger ages, and the Gardasil vaccine is good because it can help protect them from four dangerous types of the HPV virus," said senior Morgan Kaminsky from Coronado High School.

Kaminsky recently has been vaccinated for HPV. She said that she and her friends were initially unaware of what Gardasil was.

"I didn't really know that much about Gardasil, so I didn't really care if I got the shot or not," Kaminsky said. "My mom told me it was important and wanted me to get it, so I did."

Butler, who has been a gynecologist for 30 years, says that a good time to get the vaccine is between 13 and 24, the most vulnerable age range, but it is preferred that teens get vaccinated before they become sexually active.

"Teens should get vaccinated before they even have the chance of being exposed to HPV so that it can benefit them as much as possible," Butler said. "If a person comes in and has already been exposed to the virus, there really isn't any point of getting the Gardasil shots."

Butler said a decent amount of girls request the Gardasil vaccine, but that more boys should get the shot because they are the ones spreading the virus to girls.

"I get about 20 girls a month that want to get vaccinated," Butler said. "Boys should really get vaccinated because they are like silent carriers of the virus. The virus can stay in their systems and not necessarily affect them, but as soon as they have sex, it gets transmitted into the girl and spreads to many other people."

Senior Daron Willer from Green Valley High School, who also has been vaccinated, said Gardasil should be advertised more often and in a clearer manner.

"Gardasil was advertised a lot when it first came out, but I don't think it is being advertised as much now," Willer said. "I think that a lot of people may have a distorted knowledge about the vaccine, and not many people are getting it done because they don't necessarily know it exists."

Because of misconceptions surrounding Gardasil, Kaminsky said that many girls are unwilling to get the shot.

"I think some girls aren't getting vaccinated because there seems to be a lot of controversy about the side effects of it and how it can be harmful," Kaminsky said. "Some people think you can die from getting the vaccine or get the actual disease from being vaccinated."

Butler said there should be no such cause for concern.

"You are not going to die or get HPV by getting the Gardasil vaccine," Butler said. "However, if you have HPV, it can lead to cervical cancer, and if you go long enough without treating it, you can die from cancer."

According to Merck & Co., Gardasil's side effects can include pain, swelling, itching and redness at the injection spot. It can also cause patients to feel faint or feverish.

"Immediately after my third shot, I felt like I was going to faint, so I had to sit down for a while," Kaminsky said. "That was the only time I felt sick, and after that, everything was fine."

Willer said that everyone should get vaccinated, even if they are reluctant to do so.

"Even if you are scared of getting shots, having a needle put into you for two seconds is a much better idea than having HPV for the rest of your life or dying from cervical cancer," she said.