Department of Communication, University of Kentucky, 272 Blazer Dining, 343 S. Martin Luther King Blvd, Lexington, KY, 40526-0012, USA.
J Cancer Educ. 2021 Oct;36(5):990-995. doi: 10.1007/s13187-020-01726-0.
Receiving the HPV vaccine at a young age before being exposed to the virus is essential to improve HPV-related cancer prevention. In many countries in the world, like Italy, the HPV vaccine is offered free of charges to boys and girls aged 12-14. Despite this incentive, the HPV vaccine uptake in Italy remains low. Several interventions and campaigns have been implemented to educate parents and providers. However, children of 12-14 years old have been left out by prevention and education efforts. This study explored middle school children's knowledge and perceptions of the HPV virus and vaccine with the purpose to identify gaps and misperceptions and provide recommendations to develop educational interventions. A total of nine focus groups were conducted, and discussions were analyzed along with 171 anonymous questions collected from the children. Findings included a lack of knowledge of HPV prevention guidelines, negative emotions associated with both the HPV vaccine and vaccines in general, misperceptions between prevention and care, and the desire to receive specific information.
在接触病毒之前，尽早接种 HPV 疫苗对于提高 HPV 相关癌症的预防效果至关重要。在世界上许多国家，如意大利，为 12-14 岁的男孩和女孩免费提供 HPV 疫苗。尽管有这种激励措施，但意大利 HPV 疫苗的接种率仍然很低。已经实施了多项干预措施和宣传活动，以教育家长和医务人员。然而，12-14 岁的儿童被预防和教育工作所忽视。本研究旨在探讨中学生对 HPV 病毒和疫苗的知识和看法，以确定差距和误解，并为制定教育干预措施提供建议。共进行了 9 组焦点小组讨论，并对讨论内容以及从儿童那里收集的 171 份匿名问题进行了分析。研究结果包括对 HPV 预防指南缺乏了解、对 HPV 疫苗和一般疫苗的负面情绪、对预防和保健的误解，以及对获得特定信息的渴望。
