Trends in HPV
Human papillomavirus is a known cause of cervical cancer, as well as some oropharyngeal, vulvar, vaginal, penile, and anal cancers.
It is the most commonly sexually transmitted infection in the United States and is often acquired soon after initiating sexual activity. Studies indicate that approximately 90% of new cervical HPV infections, including types that cause cancer, clear or become undetectable within 2 years, and those that do not clear take decades to progress to invasive cervical cancer.
In the United States, a total of 30,115 new cases of HPV-associated cancer were reported in 1999 and 43,371 in 2015.