No abstract

Sexually transmitted diseases caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) are being diagnosed more frequently than others. It is accepted that HPV infection is a necessary cause for all cases of cervical carcinoma and a large number of other anogenital and oral cancers. Two vaccines have been developed and were licensed in 2007, which can prevent infections and pre-cancerous lesions due to HPV. In Italy pre-adolescent age (12 years-old) was identified as the ideal age for vaccination against HPV. In Liguria, the first free HPV vaccination campaign was started on 8 March 2008 in 12 year-old girls. We assessed the adherence to the vaccination during the 2008 campaign as 80.6%, 79.0% and 64.1%, respectively, for the first, second and third dose of vaccine in the target population. IntroductionSexually transmitted diseases caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) are being diagnosed more frequently than others. Today it is universally accepted that HPV infection is the necessary, although not sufficient, cause of all cases of cervical carcinoma and of a large number of other anogenital cancers and oral squamous cell carcinoma [1].