The most common cause of mortality related to human papillomavirus (HPV)
infection is
cervical cancer. However, male
HPV infection is also an important concern, both for the disease burden in men and for the risk of transmission to women. HPV is associated with a variety of
cancers in men, including
anal cancer and a subset of penile and
oral cancers. The incidence of anal and
oral cancers related to HPV is increasing in the general population and is growing even faster among individuals who are immunocompromised because of human immunodeficiency virus (
HIV) infection. Penile
HPV infection is very common among heterosexual men and remains high throughout a wide range of ages. Likewise, anal
HPV infection and anal intraepithelial
neoplasia are very common throughout a wide range of ages in both HIV-negative and HIV-positive men who have sex with men. Other HPV-related diseases of clinical importance in men include
condylomata acuminata (
genital warts) and
recurrent respiratory papillomatosis. The quadrivalent
HPV vaccine has been shown to be highly efficacious in the prevention of
genital warts in women and precancerous lesions of the cervix, vulva, and vagina. In addition, recent interim data have shown that the quadrivalent
HPV vaccine is highly effective in reducing external genital lesions in young men. Although the protective efficacy of HPV vaccination in men has not yet been fully established-pending the outcome of public policy discussions and cost-efficacy studies-there may be a strong rationale for vaccinating boys, similar to girls, at an early age when they have had limited or no prior sexual activity.