HPV vaccine and trans people

[RevolutionofourTime]

Apologies if this has been covered before.

I was just reading the NHS page on HPV vaccination policy. The vaccine is free for M and F young people (given in Year 8/9 at school) and for MSM (men who have sex with men) up to the age of 45. This is because MSM do not benefit from herd immunity like MSF.

Here’s what it says in relation to trans eligibility:

“ Trans women (people who were assigned male at birth) are eligible in the same way as MSM if their risk of getting HPV is similar to the risk of MSM who are eligible for the HPV vaccine.

Trans men (people who were assigned female at birth) are eligible if they have sex with other men and are aged 45 or under.”

I don’t understand why trans men are eligible, but adult women are not. Are trans men at a higher risk than women?

This is taken from www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/hpv-human-papillomavirus-vaccine/

*MSF = males who have sex with females.

I am more surprised that it is considered worthwhile giving the HPV vaccine to a group who have been sexually active for so long. Wouldn’t they already have the HPV virus? If anything I would think ‘MSM’ as a group are likely to have more sexual partners, and therefore more likely to be infected, than heterosexual women. Herd immunity would only kick in for age groups who have had vaccinations and that doesn’t include 40-year old women!

What an excellent point.

I have been trying to work out how to get this vaccine without paying £450.

Now to work out if my local GUM clinic accept self id.

@doesanybodywantanytoast 😁

Interesting. I'd like to know the answer to that.

I guess it's the group you are having sex with that confers risk.

Heterosexual men are presumed to be having sex with heterosexual women (who have been vaccinated), therefore they are very low risk. A women, who has sex with heterosexual men only is therefore not putting herself at much risk.

Homosexual men have unvaccinated partners and are therefore higher risk themselves.

Men who have sex with transwomen, may be homosexual or may be pan/heterosexual inc TW (but by including TW they are including unvaccinated partners in their dating pool). They are therefore higher risk. That means the TW would be at higher risk. It does specify TW who have sex with men, not women, so it is risk based and not ideological.

Transmen may be having sex with gay men as well (in theory) so again, the partners are unvaccinated and they are higher risk. They might also be a group missed by conventional screening.

I also don't agree it makes much sense for people who have been sexually active for a long time. However, if a TW used to have a female partner and is now sleeping with men, the risk might change.

However, if a TW used to have a female partner and is now sleeping with men, the risk might change

Also for a woman of 40 on the other side of a monogamous marriage.

My heads spinning a bit but what about women who have sex with non binary men, or who are pansexual?