Abstract
No studies on male attitudes towards HPV and HPV vaccination have been conducted in Japan, and little is known globally whether attitudes of single fathers differ to those living with a female partner. This exploratory study assessed whether Japanese fathers were likely to have their daughter vaccinated against HPV in a publically funded program and whether any differences existed regarding attitudes and knowledge about HPV according to marital status. Subjects were 27 fathers (16 single; 11 married) who took part in a study on HPV vaccine acceptability aimed at primary caregivers of girls aged 11-14 yrs in three Japanese cities between July and December 2010. Knowledge about HPV was extremely poor (mean score out of 13 being 2.74 ± 3.22) with only one (3.7%) participant believing he had been infected with HPV and most (81.4%) believing they had no or low future risk. No difference existed regarding knowledge or awareness of HPV according to marital status. Concerning perceived risk for daughters, single fathers were significantly more likely to believe their daughter was at risk for both HPV (87.5% versus 36.4%; p=0.01) and cervical cancer (75.0% versus 27.3%; p=0.02). Acceptability of free HPV vaccination was high at 92% with no difference according to marital status, however single fathers were significantly more likely (p=0.01) to pay when vaccination came at a cost. Concerns specific to single fathers included explaining the sexual nature of HPV and taking a daughter to a gynecologist to be vaccinated. Knowledge about HPV among Japanese fathers is poor, but HPV vaccine acceptability is high and does not differ by marital status. Providing sexual health education in schools that addresses lack of knowledge about HPV as well as information preferences expressed by single fathers, may not only increase HPV vaccine acceptance, but also actively involve men in cervical cancer prevention strategies. However, further large-scale quantitative studies are needed.
Highlights
Persistent infection with an oncogenic human papillomavirus (HPV) is responsible for almost all cases of cervical cancer, and to a lesser extent cancer of the vagina, vulva, penis, anus and oropharynx (Kreimer et al, 2005; De Vuyst et al, 2009; Ferlay et al, 2010; de Martel et al, 2012)
No studies on male attitudes towards HPV and HPV vaccination have been conducted in Japan, and little is known globally whether attitudes of single fathers differ to those living with a female partner
Since no data exists on Japanese men’s knowledge of and attitudes towards HPV and HPV vaccination and little is known globally about whether attitudes of single fathers differ to those living with a female partner, the aim of this exploratory study was to assess to what extent Japanese fathers of adolescent girls were likely to have their daughter vaccinated against HPV in a publically funded program and to investigate whether any differences exist regarding attitudes and knowledge about HPV, according to marital status
Summary
Persistent infection with an oncogenic human papillomavirus (HPV) is responsible for almost all cases of cervical cancer (de Sanjose et al, 2010; Li et al, 2011), and to a lesser extent cancer of the vagina, vulva, penis, anus and oropharynx (Kreimer et al, 2005; De Vuyst et al, 2009; Ferlay et al, 2010; de Martel et al, 2012). No studies on male attitudes towards HPV and HPV vaccination have been conducted in Japan, and little is known globally whether attitudes of single fathers differ to those living with a female partner. This exploratory study assessed whether Japanese fathers were likely to have their daughter vaccinated against HPV in a publically funded program and whether any differences existed regarding attitudes and knowledge about HPV according to marital status. Acceptability of free HPV vaccination was high at 92% with no difference according to marital status, single fathers were significantly more likely (p=0.01) to pay when vaccination came at a cost.
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