Can the vaccine be given to a young woman who is already sexually active? Is it still advisable to do so?
A. If her sexual history is fairly limited, it might make sense to seriously consider the vaccine to protect against the various strains of HPV in the vaccine. If she has already come into contact with HPV subtype 6, then she will have no protection against that strain of genital warts. But the vaccine will protect her against the other type common in America, HPV 11 if she has not yet been exposed to it. Also, she might not yet have encountered HPV subtypes 16 and 18, which means vaccination will protect her against dysplasia and possible cervical cancer. I know you are going to ask if there is any way to tell whether exposure has occurred to different strains – and the answer is no, there is no good way to do so at the moment. That’s why the vaccine is recommended for young, pre-sexually active women.
