The National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) has launched a new HPV (human papillomavirus) awareness campaign (The Talk) in collaboration with DoSomething.org, the largest not-for-profit exclusively for young people and social change with a digital platform reaching more than 6 million adolescents.

HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection. It can be deadly and is the primary cause of cervical cancer as well as other diseases affecting males and females, including cancers of the mouth and throat, as well as genital warts. In the US, there are an estimated 14 million new infections each year, and 79 million individuals, most in their late teens and early 20s, are infected with HPV. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends HPV vaccination starting at age 11 to 12 years. Unfortunately, many teens and young adults remain unvaccinated and are at risk for catching and spreading the infection.

Through “The Talk” campaign, NFID and DoSomething.org hope to make conversations about HPV prevention easier. The campaign website (www.dosomething.org/us/campaigns/the-talk) encourages young people to create personalized cards with a keyword and give the cards to their parents/guardians to start a conversation about HPV. By texting the keyword, participants receive information about HPV and the importance of vaccination. Scheduled to run until September 17, 2018, the campaign includes an opportunity for participants to win a $3,000 scholarship.

View this blog post about the campaign to learn more and encourage the teens and young adults that visit your local health department to sign up.