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Original poster

Has anyone’s dd NOT had the HPV vaccine at 12/13?

94 replies

Getbusywiththefizzie · 14/01/2021 10:08

A couple of dd’s friends are having their first hpv vaccine today.
I have had an in-depth conversation with her about the vaccine and what it does and how it will protect her in the future so she fully understands that it is the best thing for her future health and she has agreed to have it in a year or so.
She says she just isn’t ready for it yet.
Has anyone’s dd put off their vaccine at this age and had it done at a later date?

OP posts:

Ginqueen456 · 25/06/2021 18:56

My dd 14 had it a year late as she freaked out at the 1st appointment. I was due to take her to the gp to have it done but her school fitted her in with the girls in the year below her who were having them done this week.

MouseholeCat · 25/06/2021 19:00

I'm 30, I was in the first school year to get the vaccine when I was in Sixth form. The school year above me was not offered it. One of my university friends was in that school year and is now dealing with cervical cancer... at the age of 30. She probably won't be able to have kids.

I really think you should push for your daughter to get this now. It's not an easy vaccine to get if you miss the school push, and teens can go quickly from not having any HPV exposure to being sexually active. That's why they do it when they do.

Will she also be allowed to refuse the Covid vaccine on these grounds?

LadyEuphemia · 25/06/2021 19:09

My daughter has autism and a needle phobia so she decided she wouldn’t have it at 13 - her body her choice. She’s now 18, and I was super proud of her for overcoming her fears this week and having her COVID jab. She’s now thinking about having the HPV, as they were so good with her.

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bytheby · 25/06/2021 19:20

She should have it. I live in constant fear of my HPV turning to cervical cancer. I have had so much of my cervix chopped off due to HPV that I am unlikely to be able to carry the baby I am currently pregnant with to term. It is terrifying.

I know she says she will have it in a year but hopefully anyone else reading this thread will also be encouraged to go ahead.

Herd immunity doesn't work unless your daughter never plans to travel / have a gap year!

Hels20 · 25/06/2021 19:26

Needles filled with chemo drugs is far more terrifying. Knowing you are going to die is far more terrifying (as my poor sister had to contend with). Show her this thread. Scare her with pictures of 20 something year olds dying of cancer. It can happen. It does happen. I would have anything if it was a vaccine against cancer. And as you g people’s hearts beat faster it gets round the body much quicker. Do everything you can to ensure she doesn’t miss this life saving vaccine.

BunnyRuddington · 25/06/2021 19:30

No, I didn't put my DD's off but she missed her second one in school and I have not been able to find anywhere that will do it privately. GP told me it can only be done at school. Once we can travel we will have to find somewhere in England. I'm happy to pay but private healthcare isn't really a thing here and she has missed the boat with school

DD missed her first, she’d had an accident and was in A&E at the time. We spoke to the school and they arranged a catch up. We did have to drive her to another town though.

TheUndoingProject · 25/06/2021 19:31

Chemo for cervical cancer is more likely to make her vomit that the vaccine.

RampantIvy · 25/06/2021 19:39

@GlobeUs

Your DD cannot believe the gravity of her future health and protection of her future health at 12/13. You need to step up and be the parent here.

This ^^ in absolute bucketloads.

We have a young family member who has had barbaric mouth surgery, and surgery to remove several lymph nodes in her neck, followed by several weeks of horrific radiotherapy to deal with a mouth cancer that had spread, caused by HPV.

I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.

This vaccination is simply non negotiable as far as I'm concerned.

DD was very needle phobic, so didn't have the jabs at school (they were 3 jabs when she had hers), but I could rearrange the appointment to have them done at a health centre with a very understanding nurse - all through the NHS. Could you do this?

And, BTW, vomiting is not a side effect of this vaccination. Just a sore arm.

BeingATwatItsABingThing · 25/06/2021 19:47

I was in secondary school when they first rolled out this vaccine for everyone. My sister (3 years older) had hers done at the same time in college because they tried to get as many girls (it wasn’t boys at that point) vaccinated as possible. So many didn’t get it done because of their parents’ concerns it would encourage them to be promiscuous! My parents responded to that with, “We’d rather our daughters were ‘promiscuous’ than dead!”

My DDs don’t get a say at the moment as they’re 7yo and 9mo but, when they’re old enough for this vaccination, saying no still won’t be an option for them. They’ll know it’s completely the right choice to have it.

Travielkapelka · 25/06/2021 20:21

My dd did not have it for medical reasons. We really had a hard time deciding what to do for the best and in the end her health was so fragile we thought we would leave it and hope herd immunity protects her.
She had all her other vaccinations but at the time this was due was very unwell and it just wasn’t the right choice for her

There’s no herd immunity for HPV you’re not protecting against a contagious illness. She is not protected. @boatingL

Pigsnacksatthewinchester · 25/06/2021 20:26

It was available privately at Boots 18 months ago, not sure about now. Prohibitively expensive for most, though.

BertieBotts · 25/06/2021 20:29

Boys get this vaccine as well where I live.

We've been advised if DS1 has it before he's 15, then he only needs two doses for immunity. Whereas if he has it after he turns 15, he will need three doses.

So he's very keen to have it before 15 in order to avoid an extra needle. I would be as well TBF!

I don't know if it's the same for girls, but I would assume so.

Travielkapelka It's essentially a sexually transmitted disease, so there is herd immunity to an extent. The fewer people who have HPV in the first place, the fewer to pass it on which will generally reduce rates of people carrying it. But if boys aren't getting the jab, then herd immunity is unlikely to work very well.

TinyRebel · 25/06/2021 20:42

My DD has missed her second vaccination as she's been abroad for year 9. I just called the school age immunisation team at the County Council and they've booked her in for when she gets back - they should be doing some catch up clinics.
It's really important to get it done while the whole idea of sex is absolutely gross to them.
I say this as someone who's had HPV detected on a smear and had to have another one just a year later. Not fun if it can be avoided.

ShanghaiDiva · 25/06/2021 20:45

My dd had it later as we moved back to the uk when she was 14 and this vaccination was not included in the schedule where we were living.
As she is now 15 she needs three jabs (one and two done already and number three due in August )and had them at our gp practice.

notveryexpressive · 25/06/2021 20:49

They were brought in after I left school. I paid £450 for a course of 3 jabs because my first ever smear was abnormal thanks to high risk HPV infection.

If she's nervous about needles she won't want a colposcopy and a cervical biopsy when she's 25.

You need to step up, be the parent and allay her fears, because the consequences of not having this jab are fatal. This cancer kills very young women, and even if she doesn't develop cancer she will still potentially suffer the burden of investigation of dyskaryosis.

YorkshirePudding77 · 25/06/2021 21:14

Where I live the girls get vaccinated in Y8, so 12/13. After doing some reading up on the vaccine, I decided that although my daughter would have it, that we’d delay it. We were able to get her into a vaccine catch up clinic and she had her 1st vaccine at 14 years 7 months and her 2nd a few weeks ago, only 2 vaccines required. She is anxious about needles and being sick but understood the importance of the vaccine for her future health. Unfortunately she did not react well with the vaccine and fainted on both occasions and vomited the second time, which the lovely nurse said happens but is very rare. She was back to herself within an hour or so. I have another daughter who goes into Y8 in September and she has the same anxieties. I’ll more than likely delay for her too and get an appointment outside of school as she’ll find worrying about being ill or sick in front of her friends too stressful.

isthismylifenow · 25/06/2021 21:21

My dd wasn't offered at school so she is due her 2nd one now. She is 18. But it is costing a bloody fortune. I wish she had been offered it at school.

She is having Gardasil. She had a sore arm for a day or so but that was it. I think feeling nauseous after having it is an OK compromise to missing it at school and having to pay for it yourself. And then there is the less hpv risk. I absolutely insisted dd have it as I have cervical issues now.

MoFoFlo · 25/06/2021 21:41

DD and a few other kids got missed when they did HPV vaccinations at school, early in 2020. They were then off school for the rest of school year due to Covid. The local immunisation service rearranged some catch up clinics (albeit the other side if the city), but we missed the email about it that school sent. Had another appointment when she was back at school, but her class were isolating. Ended up contacting the immunisation service and she eventually she got it a year late at a drop in clinic. The immunisation service were super helpful and said that there are always kids who get missed due to absence on the day (especially with so many isolating) and those who panic and refuse. They are very keen to catch up those who slip through the net. Obviously don't delay without good reason, but I was quite surprised by how many are saying it's difficult to arrange an HPV jab outside of the school system.

boatingL · 26/06/2021 09:24

@Travielkapelka

*My dd did not have it for medical reasons. We really had a hard time deciding what to do for the best and in the end her health was so fragile we thought we would leave it and hope herd immunity protects her. She had all her other vaccinations but at the time this was due was very unwell and it just wasn’t the right choice for her*

There’s no herd immunity for HPV you’re not protecting against a contagious illness. She is not protected. @boatingL

The school nurse told us herd immunity would protect her ?! Is that incorrect then ?

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