HPV

[HIRINGGUY]

Hello gents, I'm posting under an alternative ID for confidentiality purposes.   

I was diagnosed a few years ago with HPV....the driver of the diagnosis was anal dysplasia (changing of cells in the rectum).  Nothing cancerous, but I am worried about the future.

I would be interested to PM with others who may be in the same position to understand their situation and experience.

To the rest of of my fellow members:  PLEASE get your HPV vaccine.   The age guidelines (I think) are less about the effectiveness of the vaccine at various ages, rather insurance company restrictions to pay since they assume if you are sexually active by a certain age (40?) you are already exposed.  Talk to your Dr, and get the vaccine....even if you have to self-pay.  Some protection is better than none.  Sadly, the evidence support and reimbursement for HPV vaccinations for MSM (Men who have sex with Men) were not there when the vaccines first arrived....they became more common for MSM years later, the initial focus was women and cervical cancer.

Please no negative posts, this is difficult enough thank you 🤐

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

You're a good guy for coming here and sharing this.  

I'll second your suggestion:  The HPV vax has never been easier to get or more subsidized. 

If you haven't gotten it, get it.

[spidir]

My doctor recommended the HPV vaccine but was uncertain if my insurance would cover the cost due to my age. I took his advice and was vaccinated and prepared to self-pay. It turned out that my insurance paid for my vaccine.

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

As an aside to this conversation, it doesn't take much to see the upside in getting vaxxed for this.

I've had candid discussions with friends who have HPV and occasional outbreaks (anally).  

Imagine getting something burned or frozen off in that area.  It ain't fun.

[HIRINGGUY]

There is some clinical research going on in this area, and I hope finding a treatment can be accelerated by CRISPR technology.

There is a mushroom extract called AHCC which has some success (clinically proven in research studies) in clearing the virus, not directly attacking the virus rather by boosting your immune system to clear the virus.  I took AHCC religiously for 1 year (and other immune-boosting supplements), and simultaneously got the HPV vaccination to see if combined they would bolster my own immune system to clear the virus.  Since there is no test for the HPV virus, not clear if it worked or not but there has been no improvement or change in my cell structures (not sure that is even a "thing").  Have not had to go the freeze/burn route yet but have to be tested (scoped) every 6-12 months.

[+ sniper]

Given there are many different strains of HPV, you should get the vaccine even if you've already had it.

Your Dr should have been able to tell you if the strain you have was a low or high risk strain for becoming cancerous. If s/he didn't do that testing, time for a new doc.

[SirBillybob]

Beyond Judith Smith’s small but promising American placebo-control AHCC study of 41 adult women published almost 2 years ago there is only one other ongoing similar trial, in China, with results not anticipated for at least another year.

That said, I might be inclined to take it on preliminary ‘proof of concept’ merit.

Oddly, no p value explicitly calculated but I computed the chi-squared as .029, acceptably below the .05 threshold. Trouble is that the sample size is so small that merely either one more favourable individual outcome among the placebo group or one less favourable outcome among the treatment group fails to meet the standard for statistical significance of difference. The clinical significance is reasonable.

The devil is in the details. 

Edited January 28 by SirBillybob

[marylander1940]

On 1/17/2024 at 2:09 PM, BenjaminNicholas said:

As an aside to this conversation, it doesn't take much to see the upside in getting vaxxed for this.

I've had candid discussions with friends who have HPV and occasional outbreaks (anally).  

Imagine getting something burned or frozen off in that area.  It ain't fun.

 

On 1/16/2024 at 9:40 PM, spidir said:

My doctor recommended the HPV vaccine but was uncertain if my insurance would cover the cost due to my age. I took his advice and was vaccinated and prepared to self-pay. It turned out that my insurance paid for my vaccine.

I know an escort who is 49, his Doctor told him he's too old to get vaccinated now.

Should he be vaccinated? He still has 5-10 years ahead in this profession!

[SirBillybob]

42 minutes ago, marylander1940 said:

 

I know an escort who is 49, his Doctor told him he's too old to get vaccinated now.

Should he be vaccinated? He still has 5-10 years ahead in this profession!

For men age 27-45 is the ‘shared patient-physician clinical decision-making’ range, and 46+ is not recommended based on a number of factors including likely past exposure and unlikely high number of partners going forward. It would be imperative that he disclose his risk factors as distinct from the more monogamish-prone average middle-aged adult. There is evidence to support vaxx for women >45 but it is due to an inexplicable secondary peak risk of infection in that age range. No clinical evidence to support vaxx for men >27 but practice wisdom suggests that MSM are good candidates as risk is 20-fold, and suggests that age need not be a relevant factor; no clear distinction in MSM age stratification 27-45 vs >45. The upper age limit 45 for discretionary uptake for the general population may yet increase in terms of eligibility guidance; vaccination is not contraindicated due to any age-based safety reason. It is an arbitrary age cut-off.

Survey says yes?

Edited January 28 by SirBillybob

[Luv2play]

I would suppose there must be some upper limit on age when the HPV vaccine is being considered, even for men who have sex with other men on a frequent basis. Would 75 be that upper limit? 

[+ Funguy]

There is no upper limit of effectiveness - anyone having sex - same sex or other, needs to get the vaccine.  Anyone just getting back into the "dating scene" after a long term relationship is at risk as well.  I know of several heterosexual couples who lost partners after 40-50 years of monogamy who wound up with HPV infections from new partners.

It's the one common vaccine that we have that can prevent cancer - anal, oral, etc.  Just ask Michael Douglas!  

2 hours ago, marylander1940 said:

 

I know an escort who is 49, his Doctor told him he's too old to get vaccinated now.

Should he be vaccinated? He still has 5-10 years ahead in this profession!

Kids get the vaccine starting at about 10 years of age.

Truly, it has been around for many years and the only things originally holding people back from getting it were: (1) insurance coverage and (2) oh! you're too old.  Neither reason is valid.

[Colton]

I think the age limit was set based on an assumption that you would have a certain amount of sexual partners by a certain age, or monogamous, so either you would already be exposed or not at risk.  
 

That isn’t the reality we live in and in this community some people start experiencing sex earlier or later in life.  So if you are sexually active go get the vaccine even if you have to self pay.  

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

On 1/28/2024 at 5:19 PM, SirBillybob said:

Most young men should know their HPV vaxx history.

True.  It is even more important for providers to list, and clients to look for, their HPV vaccine status.  This is more important than monkey pox vaccine.  The HPV can cause cancer.  Monkey pox just looks bad.

Edited February 28 by Vegas_Millennial

[CuriousByNature]

Am I understanding correctly that for those beyond a certain age, the vaccine remains available but is not covered?  Does anyone know what the general cost of the vaccine might be in Canada?  I like to protect myself against pretty much everything even though there isn't much chance of any romantic encounters for me - I've recently turned 50 but have never been exposed, unless it can be passed non-sexually.

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

3 hours ago, CuriousByNature said:

Am I understanding correctly that for those beyond a certain age, the vaccine remains available but is not covered?  Does anyone know what the general cost of the vaccine might be in Canada?  I like to protect myself against pretty much everything even though there isn't much chance of any romantic encounters for me - I've recently turned 50 but have never been exposed, unless it can be passed non-sexually.

It is a skin-to-skin contact transmission.  

You can google what it would cost.  The info is all there.

You've likely been exposed to HPV at some point.  Most people have.  Most healthy immune systems clear it without ever showing symptoms.

However, there are those who don't and develop anal/genital warts and cancer.  

[Monarchy79]

HPV, Monkeypox, Pneumonia and Meningitis vaccines….. get them all. 
 

 

[+ robear]

To echo BN above, the reason for the age limit associated with the vax is the assumption that any sexually active person of an age (and we know that SOME of us have bodycounts in the thousands!) will already have been exposed to the virus in some of its many forms.  The original impetus was to vax teenagers before they become sexually active, although that age consideration has been revised upward.  You might begin by asking your doctor for an antibodies test to see if you're already positive.  I believe that if so, they will also analyze what strains of the virus you carry, only a few are problematic.  Better yet, take up the whole matter with a clinician informed of men's STIs and whether the vax might be useful for you.

[SirBillybob]

On 2/29/2024 at 9:18 AM, CuriousByNature said:

Am I understanding correctly that for those beyond a certain age, the vaccine remains available but is not covered?  Does anyone know what the general cost of the vaccine might be in Canada?  I like to protect myself against pretty much everything even though there isn't much chance of any romantic encounters for me - I've recently turned 50 but have never been exposed, unless it can be passed non-sexually.

Gardasil9 for men that have sex with men (Canadian guidelines); 3 doses of .5 ml; months 0, 2, 6. Not covered for exposure-at-risk men age 27 and up. Probably about $600 CAD for the series. 

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

On 3/1/2024 at 12:59 PM, SirBillybob said:

Not covered for exposure-at-risk men age 27 and up. Probably about $600 CAD for the series. 

I was prepared to pay about $500 US for my HPV vaccines.  It turns out my insurance covers 100% all vaccines regardless of age.  Thank goodness for private insurance!  But I was prepared and willing to pay out of pocket.  An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.

[Anthony]

Has anyone experienced any side effects of the HPV vaccine? 

[+ nycman]

34 minutes ago, Anthony said:

Has anyone experienced any side effects of the HPV vaccine? 

The shot hurt like hell for about one minute. A day or so later I got a mildly intense flu like reaction for a couple hours. Nothing some Motrin and a hot bath couldn’t take care of though. And it sure beats the fuck out of getting a preventable cancer. As an added bonus a few weeks later a plantar wart that had for decades been resistant to multiple treatments….magically disappeared. 

Get the shots. 

[Anthony]

3 hours ago, nycman said:

The shot hurt like hell for about one minute. A day or so later I got a mildly intense flu like reaction for a couple hours. Nothing some Motrin and a hot bath couldn’t take care of though. And it sure beats the fuck out of getting a preventable cancer. As an added bonus a few weeks later a plantar wart that had for decades been resistant to multiple treatments….magically disappeared. 

Get the shots. 

When did you get your shot? I thought it has multiple series. What were your exact symptoms? If you want you can private message me instead  

[+ nycman]

12 hours ago, Anthony said:

When did you get your shot? I thought it has multiple series. What were your exact symptoms? If you want you can private message me instead  

I don’t mind sharing with the crowd.

It is a series of 3 shots at zero, 2 months, and 6 months. I got my 3 shots in the early fall into winter of this past year.

I only had a reaction to the second shot. Interestingly that was also the shot that seemed to attack the wart on my foot. I was "achy’ all over, low grade fever, mild headache, and "felt sick". Took Motrin and got into a hot bath. Total time "not feeling good" was maybe 2-3 hours.

Hope that helps. Get the shots!

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

6 hours ago, nycman said:

I don’t mind sharing with the crowd.

It is a series of 3 shots at zero, 2 months, and 6 months. I got my 3 shots in the early fall into winter of this past year.

I only had a reaction to the second shot. Interestingly that was also the shot that seemed to attack the wart on my foot. I was "achy’ all over, low grade fever, mild headache, and "felt sick". Took Motrin and got into a hot bath. Total time "not feeling good" was maybe 2-3 hours.

Hope that helps. Get the shots!

Thanks for putting it into perspective.

To avoid ass/throat cancer, I'd deal with those kinds of side effects.  

Again, folks need to put these things into perspective.  It's not a difficult decision.

[marylander1940]

On 4/16/2024 at 12:56 AM, nycman said:

The shot hurt like hell for about one minute. A day or so later I got a mildly intense flu like reaction for a couple hours. Nothing some Motrin and a hot bath couldn’t take care of though. And it sure beats the fuck out of getting a preventable cancer. As an added bonus a few weeks later a plantar wart that had for decades been resistant to multiple treatments….magically disappeared. 

Get the shots. 

How old where you when you got vaccinated?

 

Edited April 17 by marylander1940