Multimedia Reporting (Fred-Musser)

When Mary received the results of her annual pap smear last year, she cried. She had contracted Human papillomavirus, or HPV.

Mary, a 2006 KU graduate who asked that her real name not be used for this story, is not alone. HPV is the most prevalent sexually transmitted disease on KU’s campus, and according to Centers for Disease Control (CDC) close to 50 percent of men and women will contract the virus at some point in their lives. By age 40, CDC estimates that 80 percent of women will have contracted the disease.

There are over one hundred different viral types of HPV, some of which have embarrassing and potentially dangerous effects.

They can cause genital warts, or, when left unchecked, can lead to cervical cancer. Others have no symptoms, no consequences, and go away on their own.

“I was diagnosed with a high-risk strand of HPV,” Mary said. “I had to ask my doctor to explain it to me. I didn’t know it meant I had an STD.”

Mary was diagnosed with a strand known to cause cervical cancer just six months before the Food and Drug Administration approved Gardasil, a vaccine that is almost 100 percent effective against two strands of HPV that cause 90 percent of all cases of genital warts and two other strands that cause 70 percent of all cases of cervical cancer.

The vaccine has been available at Watkins Health Center since August, and Student Health Services actually took part in the research that led to the approval of Gardasil.

Bill Smith, student health educator for Student Health Services, said that he gives presentations to dorms and fraternities and sororities on sexual health in general.

“When I go out to give sexual health presentations, I do mention the vaccine, and that we have it available at the Health Center,” Smith said.

“Everyone who comes into the gynecology clinic gets a pamphlet on HPV,” said Kathy Guth, nurse practioner in gynecology at Watkins.

But Mary said that she thought HPV awareness at KU was minimal, at best.

“In my four years at KU, I heard five minutes about HPV, period, in one health class,” Mary said. “My professor said close to 80 percent of people at KU probably have it, and then just moved on.”

Megan Dodge, Overland Park senior, also said that she thought Student Health Services was not doing enough to educate the campus about HPV.

“Maybe for incoming freshman, they should be required to go to some sort of health class administered by Watkins and peer health educators,” said Dodge, who is an officer with the campus organization Students for Reproductive Rights. “A university health center has the responsibility to protect its students.”

Patty Quinlan, supervisor of Nursing at Watkins, said that because HPV is an STD, the stigma hindered Student Health Services’ ability to raise awareness.

“With meningitis, we had a student come out who was very helpful in offering a human voice for the infection,” Quinlan said. “Student Health Services would never ask someone to do that for HPV.”

Dodge also said that she thought students might be hesitant to get the vaccine for personal reasons.

“A lot of girls aren’t going to want their parents to know,” Dodge said. “If you come from a conservative background, your parents or your minister might say it will make you promiscuous, and that’s totally false.”

In fact, HPV can be passed from person to person without even engaging in sexual intercourse. Because HPV is a virus that lives in the skin or mucous membranes in genital areas, some of which aren’t covered by condoms, practicing safe sex does not completely protect against HPV.

Perhaps even more startling, no test currently is approved to detect HPV in men, and no vaccine is available for them either.

Guth said 120 women have received the vaccine since August. From CDC estimates and Fall 2006 enrollment information of full-time undergraduate students, it can be concluded that as many as 13,000 men and women on KU’s campus have or will be infected with HPV at some point in their lives.

The vaccine, which is a series of three shots, costs $148 a shot, for a total of $444 for the vaccination.

Smith said that the high expense of the shot affected some students’ decisions.

“It’s new and it’s expensive,” Smith said. “I think that could be an impediment for some students for getting it, if they don’t have insurance, or if they’re paying for their medical bills out of pocket.”

The health insurance plans available to students through Student Health Services do not cover any part of the Gardasil vaccine.

At least one major insurance company can help cover the cost.

“Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas is prepared to pay for claims for the vaccine when we start receiving them,” said Mary Beth Chambers, manager of corporate communications for BCBS.

Because the vaccine was approved for girls ages 11-26, Chambers expected requests for the vaccine to increase as awareness increases.

“We anticipate that it will become a recommended vaccine for school-aged children, and will most likely be required for middle school entrance,” Chambers said.

Until then, she said the full cost of vaccinations will be covered.

“I’m amazed at the number of women who come in and just say ‘I want it’ before they know if their insurance will cover it,” Guth said.

Annual Pap smears are the best method for early detection of HPV.

Chambers recommends that students talk with their health care providers about insurance coverage if they are interested in the HPV vaccine.