It was not so long ago, when my son was still soft cheeks and the voices of children who have been vaccinated against the human papillomavirus, the most common sexual disease transmission.
It was late 2011, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention disease only recommended that children be vaccinated girls at 11 or 12, which was certainly meet receptive: HPV, as generally known causes of cervical cancer, tonsil cancer, the back of the tongue cancer, and less frequently, vulvar, vaginal, anus and penis.
It seemed important to make sure that my children are protected.
, To published figures last month from the CDC show that my son, now 14 and 15 belong to a small minority of young people who have been vaccinated.
In 2013, only 14 percent of American children aged 13 to 17 received all three doses of the HPV vaccine recommended.
(The CDC also recommends "catch up" -Impfung for men up to age 21)
Not that the parents rushing to their daughters vaccinated either, although the CDC first recommended to pay the vaccine for preadolescent girls in 2007 and almost all insurance companies. In 2013, less than 38 percent of American girls had received the full course of three doses of 13 to 17.
It is heartbreaking to see a safe and effective vaccine unused. Note: The CDC estimates that the increased rate of American girls and 80 percent of the 53,000 cases of cervical cancer vaccination would the lives of the young, who now avoid 12 years.
When I vaccinate my children, it is partly with girls in mind.
After all, if the number of young men are infected, the number of young women who are exposed to the virus that causes cervical cancer - the most common cancer currently prevented by the vaccine.
But now I realize that HPV is a growing risk for men.
A new kind of the back of the tongue and tonsil cancer caused by HPV, increases in the frequency - is likely to cause, the researchers suggest that by increasing premarital sex and oral sex decades.
These cancers affect men more often than women, and younger age than other types of head and neck cancer, which usually occur in men over 60 s.
The middle-aged men who do not die of their HPV-associated cancer often live for years with the side effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy intensive delivered to the back of the throat.
This can swallow permanent disability and subsequent malignancies, aggressive, induced by radiation are.
If this trend continues, we will see more cases of cancer of the back of the tongue and tonsils caused by HPV.
A recent analysis of 30 studies that found by researchers at the University of Wisconsin that the proportion of cancers caused by HPV, increased from 21 percent before 1990 to 65 percent after 2000.
Anil Chaturvedi of the National Cancer Institute and colleagues estimated that it is based on recent trends, that in 2020 more new cases of these cancers induced throat HPV in the United States each year new cases of cervical cancer.
So the actor Michael Douglas gave us when he was open to any one service with the British newspaper The Guardian last year.
When asked if his throat cancer was alcohol and heavy smoking, which caused also risk factors for the disease, said the actor: "No, I mean, not specifically these tests Cancer particular is caused by the so-called HPV.. "
Many parents do not want to think about her 11 years and 12 as sexual beings.
Ironically, the CDC recommendation is not to assume that children are sexually active at that tender age, but they are not: the point of vaccination is to close the door before the horse out of the stable.
Needless to say that your child is not "that kind" of child.
The fact is that HPV is so common that almost all sexually active adults infected at a given time.
Last year, the CDC estimates that about 79 million Americans have been infected, most of them in their teens and 20s.
Most people have an HPV infection because their immune system clears without permanent damage.
However, in some people, the virus is installed and proceeds to cause cancer.
I am grateful. Caused by HPV vaccination, I never know if my child fell into that second category of bad luck
Wadman is a partner Wendy and Eric Schmidt at the New America Foundation. He is currently writing a book on the history of the vaccine.