UC San Diego

There are two commercially available vaccines licensed worldwide for the prevention of cervical cancer and other human papillomavirus-associated cancers such as anal cancer. However, only two countries have implemented healthcare programs that include human papillomavirus vaccination for boys and men. Although most of the human papillomavirus-related cancers in the world are attributable to cervical cancer, in developed countries anal cancer accounts for a larger proportion of human papillomavirus-related cancers. Most cases of anal cancer occur in HIV-infected men who have sex with men. In this review, we discuss the burden of human papillomavirus-related cancers in men, the most plausible immune mechanism associated with the high efficacy of the human papillomavirus vaccine, and address key issues of vaccination for HIV-infected men. Finally, we review cost-effectiveness considerations for the use of the vaccine in boys and recent guidelines for vaccination in boys, with attention to HIV-infected men.