HJAR Nov/Dec 2025

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS I  NOV / DEC 2025 41 Niki Carter, DMD, MPH Dental Director Delta Dental of Arkansas consider discussing HPV vaccina- tion with people who are most likely to benefit. For more information, see ACIP’s shared clinical decision-making FAQs. 16 Dental Providers and HPV The perception of many healthcare pro- fessionals is that it is the responsibility of physicians to inform and educate their patients about the HPV vaccine. However, dental providers should also discuss this cancer-preventing vaccine with their pa- tients or the parents of pediatric patients. Dental providers screen for oral and oropharyngeal cancers each time a pa- tient comes into their office for their reg- ular visits, so it’s logical this conversation would occur. Additionally, dentists are the first line of defense since they are actively screening for oral abnormalities or potential malignancies. 17 As more dental providers discuss this im- portant association of oral cancer and HPV infection, education about this association will grow. Emphasizing cancer prevention by promoting awareness of this potentially life-saving vaccine will also remind patients that without good oral health, it is not pos- sible to have good overall health. n REFERENCES 1 Taylor D. Ellington, et al., “Trends in Incidence of Cancers of the Oral Cavity and Pharynx — United States 2007–2016,” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 69, no. 15 (2020): 433–8, http://dx.doi . org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6915a1. 2 “What Are Oral Cavity and Oropharyngeal Cancers?” American Cancer Society, https://www.cancer.org/ cancer/oral-cavity-and-oropharyngeal-cancer/ about/what-is-oral-cavity-cancer.html. 3 S. Sen, et al., “Paratharmone Related Protein (Peptide): A Novel Prognostic, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Marker in Head & Neck Cancer,” Journal of Stomatology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery 119, no. 1 (2018): 33–36, https://doi.org/10.1016/j. jormas.2017.10.016. 4 “Oropharyngeal Cancer,” MD Anderson Cancer Center, https://www.mdanderson.org/cancer-types/ throat-cancer/oropharyngeal-cancer.html. 5 “Rates of Occurrence in the United States,” The Oral Cancer Foundation, https:// oralcancerfoundation.org/facts/# :~:text=Rates%20 of%20occurrence%20in%20the%20United%20 States&text=(Approximately%2057%25)%20 This%20is,over%20the%20last%20ten%20years. 6 Matteo Saccucci, et al., “Autoimmune Diseases and Their Manifestations on Oral Cavity: Diagnosis and Clinical Management,” Journal of Immunology Research 2018, no. 1 (2018): 6061825, https://doi. org/10.1155/2018/6061825. 7 Scott Langevin, et al., “Regular Dental Visits Are Associated with Earlier Stage at Diagnosis for Oral and Pharyngeal Cancer,” Cancer Causes & Control 23, no. 11 (2012): 1821–9, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552- 012-0061-4. 8 Allen M. Chen, “The Epidemic of Human Papillomavirus Virus-Related Oropharyngeal Cancer: Current Controversies and Future Questions,” Infectious Agents and Cancer 19, no. 1 (2024): 58, https://doi.org/10.1186/s13027-024-00616-0. 9 Mary Roz Timbang, et al., “HPV-Related Oropharyngeal Cancer: A Review on Burden of the Disease and Opportunities for Prevention and Early Detection,” Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics 15, no. 7–8 (2019): 1920–8, https://doi.org/10.1080/21 645515.2019.1600985. 10 “Cancers Linked with HPV Each Year,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, June 11, 2025, https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/hpv/cases. html#:~:text=HPV%20causes%20about%20 37%2C800%20of%20these%20cancers.,tonsils)%20 are%20the%20most%20common%20among%20 men. 11 HPV (Human Papillomavirus),” Cleveland Clinic, https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/11901- hpv-human-papilloma-virus. 12 Silvia Gazzetta, et al., “Sexually Transmitted Infections and the HPV-Related Burden: Evolution of Italian Epidemiology and Policy,” Frontiers in Public Health 12 (2024), https://doi.org/10.3389/ fpubh.2024.1336250. 13 “HPV and Cancer,” Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center, https://www.masseycancercenter.org/cancer- types-and-treatments/cancer-types/anal-cancer/ hpv-and-cancer/#:~:text=HPV%20Cause%20Cancer? 14 Christian Hübbers and Baki Akgül, “HPV and Cancer of the Oral Cavity,” Virulence 6, no. 3 (2015): 244–8, https://doi.org/10.1080/21505594.2014.999570. 15 “Cancers Caused by HPV,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, March 3, 2025, https://www. cdc.gov/hpv/about/cancers-caused-by-hpv.html. 16 “HPV Vaccination Recommendations,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, https://www.cdc. gov/vaccines/vpd/hpv/hcp/recommendations.html. 17 “The Role of Dental and Medical Professionals," The OralCancerFoundation,https://oralcancerfoundation. org/dental/role-dental-medical-professionals/. Almost all oropharyngeal cancers are caused by HPV 16. HPV is a small DNA vi- rus with a biologic predilection for squa- mous epithelia. HPV infects mucosa and HPV 16 and HPV 18 cause premalignant squamous neoplasms that can progress to malignancies. 14 There is an HPV prevention vaccination. It is given as a series of either two or three doses, depending on age at initial vaccina- tion, and is estimated to prevent up to 90% of HPV-related cancers. 15 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s current guidance includes: • Vaccination at age 11 or 12 years. (Vacci- nation can be started at age 9 in certain circumstances.) • Vaccination for everyone through age 26 years if not adequately vaccinated when younger. • Vaccination is not recommended for everyone older than age 26 years. (Some adults ages 27 through 45 years might decide to get the HPV vaccine based on discussion with their clini- cian, if they did not get adequately vaccinated when they were younger. HPV vaccination of people in this age range provides less benefit, for several reasons, including that more people in this age range have already been ex- posed to HPV.) • HPV vaccination does not need to be discussed with most adults over age 26 years, however, for adults ages 27 through 45 years, clinicians can