Do All Types of HPV Cause Cancer?

Do all types of HPV cause cancer?

Paul Offit:Hi, my name is Paul Offit. I'm talking to you today from the Vaccine Education Center here at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

HPV, or human papillomavirus, has a variety of different serotypes, or types of virus, that cause different kinds of disease. So for example, there are types of HPV that cause anal and genital warts; there are types of HPV that are causes of cancer of the head and neck, of the anal and genital area, of the cervix; and there are types of HPV that are very low risk for cancer, very low risk for anal and genital warts. And so, it can be a little confusing. The vaccines that are currently used in this country contain the strains that are most likely to cause anal and genital warts and most likely to cause cancer.