ASU Offers Free HPV Vaccine Monday

SAN ANGELO, TX – For the third year in a row, ASU students will be able to receive the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine free of charge at the 3rd annual ASU Be Wise – Immunize vaccine event.

On Monday, March 2 the ASU BE Wise – Immunize event will provide access to the HPV vaccine to all students who may not have been vaccinated as teens. ASU students can receive this potentially life-saving vaccine at no cost to them, whether or not they have insurance.

“HPV vaccination is cancer prevention,” said Celeste Caballero, MD, director of the ASU Be Wise – Immunize event.

The human papillomavirus is known to cause cervical cancer, as well as several types of head and neck cancers, and genital cancers. For more than 10 years, the HPV vaccine has proven to be a safe and effective way to prevent HPV-associated cancers. 

“We are really excited to offer the HPV vaccine to college students who never received this vaccine as a teen,” said Caballero.

In West Texas, many teens don’t receive the cancer-preventing vaccine before entering college as it is not mandatory in Texas school districts. The high cost of the vaccine (over $200 per dose) and lack of recommendation by physicians has made rural Texas a hotspot for low HPV vaccination rates. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates HPV vaccination rates for the first of 3 doses in rural Texas are 46%, compared to 79% in El Paso County, a larger city in West Texas.

Because of the Medical Society’s efforts to vaccinate ASU students on campus, the ASU student clinic now stocks the HPV vaccine, a new development since the event began, allowing students to receive 3 doses of the HPV vaccine, which are recommended for full protection.

To offer this vaccine free to ASU students, the Concho Valley County Medical Society has teamed up with community partners including Texas Medical Association, ASU, San Angelo Community Medical Center, Department of State Health Services, and Esperanza Clinic.