Sexual Orientation Identity Disparities in Awareness and Initiation of the Human Papillomavirus Vaccine
Authors: Madina Agénor, Jennifer E. Potter, S. Bryn Austin
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2015)

Letters15 December 2015Sexual Orientation Identity Disparities in Awareness and Initiation of the Human Papillomavirus VaccineMadina Agénor, ScD, MPH, Jennifer E. Potter, MD, and S. Bryn Austin, ScDMadina Agénor, ScD, MPHFrom Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and Fenway Health; and Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.Search for more papers by this author, Jennifer E. Potter, MDFrom Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and Fenway Health; and Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.Search for more papers by this author, and S. Bryn Austin, ScDFrom Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and Fenway Health; and Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/L15-5183 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail IN RESPONSE:First, we would like to clarify that our article's main finding was that lesbian women and girls aged 15 to 25 years who had heard of the HPV vaccine were significantly less likely to have initiated vaccination than their heterosexual counterparts. In contrast, we found no difference in HPV vaccination initiation between bisexual and heterosexual women and girls.Second, in addition to the factors mentioned by Dr. Sterling, health care providers' beliefs may play an important role in shaping HPV vaccination disparities across sexual orientation groups (1, 2). Indeed, providers may erroneously believe that HPV can be transmitted ...References1. Hutchinson MK, Thompson AC, Cederbaum JA. Multisystem factors contributing to disparities in preventive health care among lesbian women. J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs. 2006;35:393-402. [PMID: 16700689] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. Marrazzo JM, Stine K, Koutsky LA. Genital human papillomavirus infection in women who have sex with women: a review. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2000;183:770-4. [PMID: 10992207] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Marrazzo JM, Gorgos LM. Emerging sexual health issues among women who have sex with women. Curr Infect Dis Rep. 2012. [PMID: 22302577] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Kreimer AR, Struyf F, Del Rosario-Raymundo MR, Hildesheim A, Skinner SR, Wacholder S, et al; Costa Rica Vaccine Trial and PATRICIA study groups. Efficacy of fewer than three doses of an HPV-16/18 AS04-adjuvanted vaccine: combined analysis of data from the Costa Rica Vaccine and PATRICIA trials. Lancet Oncol. 2015;16:775-86. [PMID: 26071347] doi:10.1016/S1470-2045(15)00047-9 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: From Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and Fenway Health; and Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.Disclosures: Authors have disclosed no conflicts of interest. Forms can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOf InterestForms.do?msNum=M14-2108. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoSexual Orientation Identity Disparities in Awareness and Initiation of the Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Among U.S. Women and Girls Madina Agénor , Sarah Peitzmeier , Allegra R. Gordon , Sebastien Haneuse , Jennifer E. Potter , and S. Bryn Austin Sexual Orientation Identity Disparities in Awareness and Initiation of the Human Papillomavirus Vaccine Madeline Sterling Metrics Cited byHealth Care-Related Correlates of Cervical Cancer Screening among Sexual Minority Women: An Integrative Review 15 December 2015Volume 163, Issue 12Page: 960-961KeywordsConflicts of interestDisclosureHealth care providersHealth statisticsHealth surveysHeterosexualsHuman papillomavirusHuman sexual behaviorStatistical dataVaccines ePublished: 15 December 2015 Issue Published: 15 December 2015 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2015 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...