Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

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What HPV really meant for the average student: I here are more ihan X W W types ol H P V, some of wicli can eause cervical cancer It is estimated tli.it many people get III ' X ' within their first U W J V CcXl O of becoming sexually active. Every year in the U.S. about 10,000 women get cervical cancer and 5 Vy Vy die from it. An average of X J women die each day from the disease, 1 LUX doses during a period of ol A. months. About yj , lllllllCJll people contract HPV each year. . people in the U.S. are infected with HPV at any one time. Lafene ' s The vaccine is given in About 20 million, $135 per dose. price for the vaccine is 4» X w w L 1 VJ.VJOt and $405 for the full series. Sources: www.cdc.gov, www.fda.gov amd literature published by Merck Co.. 2006 In early September, Lafene Health Center offered female students the opportunity to protect themselves against the second most common cause of cancer death in women worldwide. Merck pharmaceutical company hadn ' t found the cure for cancer, but it had created a vaccine designed exclusively for women that came close, and Lafene had its share of d oses on hand. The vaccine, known as Gardasil, protectED women against four of the most dangerous types of human papillomavirus, which cause 70 percent of cervical cancers and 90 percent of genital warts. There are very few things that come along that have this great an impact, Carol Kennedy, Lafene ' s director of health promotion, said. It ' s a great thing that can positively impact the health of female college students, and we have it. Each year in the United States, about 6 million people get HPV, and at least 50 percent of sexually active people will get HPV at some time in their lives.. Kennedy also said 80 percent of college students nationwide are sexually active. Offering the vaccine on campus became even more important because HPV is most common in young women and men in their late teens and early 20s. By the beginning of October Kennedy said she was not sure if even one student had begun the three-dose series of the vaccine because not many people knew about it yet. Cost deterred the students from getting vaccinated, too. Students had to pay $135 per dose ($405 for the three-dose series), and not all insurance companies covered the vaccine. However, Kennedy said the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the monetary cost. My role is to educate about HPV and its prevalence and try to get the potential recipient of the vaccine to understand that getting the vaccine could prevent hundreds of dollars worth of medical care for healthcare costs related to HPV infection, Kennedy said. However, once the product is more established, I could foresee the cost coming down. Until then, Lafene, and women ' s groups and sexual education groups on campus, stressed that college women should get the vaccine and be sexually healthy in general. Members of Sexual Health Awareness Prevention Education incorporated discussions of the vaccine into some of the presentations they gave to students. I hope people get vaccinated to protect themselves, if they feel they are at risk, said Lindsay Hicks, president of S.H.A.PE. and senior in psychology. Whether or not they choose to be vaccinated, I hope women, and men, keep themselves protected from this and other STDs by getting tested regularly and using condoms. Susan Allen, director of K-State ' s Women ' s Center, said college students need to take care of themselves as young adults. College students need to educate themselves about issues impacting their health, Allen said. How students choose to care or not care for themselves at this age will have consequences their whole lives. Our grandmothers taught us, ' an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, ' and that is still true. 25

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by Jessica Durham MEDICAL advancement Lafene Health Center offers three-dose HPV vaccine to female stu- dents; healthy sexual habits encouraged by campus organizations ' .jluadrivalent Huf « Pillomavirus es6. Il,l6j»;j .. ' icombinantVacC ' ' ARDASIL Govt be No 2 24 illustration by Christopher Hanewinckel ■[j ' Vs6.11,l6J« i I J combinantVaf » ARDASIL lis r , • ' Govt Uc No 2 Wlomavlru b, n, 16, tbinanf Vl

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, ' , f i H,1 09 3 ♦ CO 26 •am f Excited about K- State and prospective students, Pat Bosco, dean of student life, talks to high school juniors and seniors Oct. 6. We want students to understand and get the full view of K-State and all the things it has to offer, Bosco said. K-State offered about 20 days to high school students thoughout the year to convince them K-State was right for them. Students were also encouraged to bring their parents to the seminar. ]os yn Broivrt At the begining of the day. Tamara Bowles, admissions representative, hands Kelsey Drake, senior at Washburn Rural High School in Topeka, an information folder at the College Success Seminar. We stuff these packets with so much information, Bowles said. We want the high school students to know that there is so much here to do at K- State. Prospective students attended the seminar to learn more about K-State. Joilyn Brown [WElCniVIFi ' .J n: