A government advisory panel is recommending boys ages 11 to 12 routinely be given a vaccine safeguarding against the sexually transmitted human papilloma virus. Most doctors already recommend that girls in that same age bracket be vaccinated against the virus, which can lead to cervical cancer; but health experts say that vaccinating males, as well, will help prevent anal cancer in men, particularly gay men, and will help ensure that unvaccinated females don’t contract the virus through their partners. “I think this is a major step forward in prevention of HPV-related cancers,” says Dr. Joel Palefsky, a professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco. “It also serves to equalize the burden of vaccination to not just one gender and recognizes the responsibility of males and females. It’s a sexually transmitted disease.” (Los Angeles Times)