HPV jab girls 'more cautious about sex'

London, October 27 (ANI): Having the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine for prevention of sexually-transmitted infection has left eight in 10 girls more cautious about the risks of having sex, a UK poll has found.

The team at the University of Manchester quizzed 500 girls and found that 79 per cent said having the jab reminded them of the possible risks of sexual contact.

According to the poll, funded by GlaxoSmithKline, makers of Cervarix vaccine, 93 per cent of girls said it showed they were serious about their own health.

"Despite the scare-stories, this research suggests that the HPV vaccine could make the majority of girls more cautious about sex," the BBC quoted Dr Lesley Walker, director of cancer information at Cancer Research UK, as saying.

"The HPV vaccine is an important step towards preventing cervical cancer in the UK but it will only be truly successful if uptake is high.

"It's important that girls also get appropriate sex education so that they're all aware of the risks of sex," Walker added.

The findings have been published in the British Journal of Cancer. (ANI)