On the Path to Prevention from the St. Jude HPV Cancer Prevention Program

Today is International HPV Awareness Day

Today is International HPV Awareness Day. This international day of recognition aims to increase public awareness of HPV and the importance of prevention through vaccination, screening, diagnosis, and treatment of HPV-related disease, including HPV cancers. Today holds special meaning for our program as well. Three years ago on March 4, 2021, we formally announced the launch of the HPV Cancer Prevention Program at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. We focus on on-time HPV vaccination as our program’s primary strategy, and we are motivated by the possibility of eliminating cancers caused by HPV. We know it will take all of us to achieve gains in vaccination coverage and ultimately elimination in the United States.

Our International HPV Awareness Day 2024 Virtual Seminar Series is underway. Three seminars have been completed, and there are two more to come. Speaking of elimination, one seminar focused on eliminating HPV cancers beginning with cervical cancer as a public health problem is being held today (March 4). The final seminar on HPV vaccination among childhood cancer survivors will be held tomorrow (March 5). You can register at stjude.org/IHAD2024.

Our partners at the American Cancer Society (ACS) and ACS National HPV Vaccination Roundtable will be hosting a great virtual event on HPV cancer prevention and innovation on March 6 in observance of International HPV Awareness Day. Learn more and register for this event here.

A quick plug for anyone looking for a new opportunity. Our program is hiring a new program coordinator to join our team. You can learn more and apply here.

We have so much more in this March 2024 communication. Take a look. As always, if you have something you want to share, let us know. Email us at PreventHPV@stjude.org.

HPV vaccination is cancer prevention.

International HPV Awareness Day 2024 Virtual Seminar Series:

Final Seminars on March 4 and 5

Register today for the final two St. Jude International HPV Awareness Day 2024 seminars

The St. Jude HPV Cancer Prevention Program annually recognizes International HPV Awareness Day with a series of virtual seminars focused on all aspects of HPV vaccination and HPV cancer prevention efforts. There are two opportunities remaining to join these seminars live and register to receive the recordings, which will be publicly posted at stjude.org/hpv in the future. There is still time to register for the seminar series at stjude.org/IHAD2024. If you have any questions, email PreventHPV@stjude.org.

Celebrating Women’s History Month and
Advocates for HPV Cancer Prevention

In March, we celebrate Women’s History Month and Advocates for HPV Cancer Prevention, we want to recognize three outstanding women who have been powerful forces in preventing HPV cancers and saving lives. Countless numbers of women have led in various fields in America and around the world, including cancer prevention through HPV vaccination. For more information, visit Women’s History Milestones: A Timeline , National Women’s Health Network, and Center for American Women and Politics.

“I strongly recommend getting the HPV vaccination because I want to reduce your risk of developing cancer in the future,”

Margot Savoy, MD, MPH, FAAFP
Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University
American Academy of Family Physicians

Dr. Margot Savoy currently serves as a senior vice president for education, inclusiveness, and physician well-being for the American Academy of Family Physicians. Savoy is also a family medicine specialist who spent nine years at a family medicine practice before joining the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University, Margot Savoy, MD, has spent her career working with families and children. She is a passionate and tireless advocate for HPV vaccination and HPV cancer prevention. She has served in leadership of the ACS National HPV Vaccination Roundtable and currently is in leadership of the ACS National Cervical Cancer Roundtable.

“Many years of research has shown that HPV vaccination is safe, effective, and produces a durable response to protect against HPV cancers – including among survivors of childhood cancer.”

Melissa M. Hudson, MD, FASCO
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Dr. Melissa Hudson has dedicated her career to helping pediatric cancer survivors achieve the best possible health and quality of life. In addition to treating patients with pediatric cancers at St. Jude, Hudson collaborates with researchers seeking cures for pediatric cancers. She also advises health care providers in helping to prevent life-threatening cancers later in life by vaccinating adolescents for HPV after completion of cancer-directed therapy. She was instrumental in forming the St. Jude HPV Cancer Prevention Program and continues to be actively involved as an advisor and contributor.

“HPV Vaccination at age 9 is incredibly important as it offers a powerful shield against human papillomavirus, which is a primary cause of cervical and other types of cancers. Getting vaccinated at age 9 ensures a strong response that provides long-lasting protection. By choosing this for our kids, we empower them lead full, healthy lives, free of HPV-related illnesses, including cancer.”

Michelle Bowden, MD
University of Tennessee Health Science Center and Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital

Dr. Michelle Bowden was an early adopter of starting HPV vaccination at age 9. As an associate professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and as a practicing pediatrician at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, she has influenced her colleagues on the benefit of starting HPV vaccination early resulting in better vaccine completion in Memphis, Tennessee and beyond. She currently serves as the chair of the Memphis and Shelby County HPV Cancer Prevention Roundtable.

The HPV Cancer Prevention Program at St. Jude continues to focus on improving rural HPV vaccination coverage. We recently held a quarterly update meeting on February 21. The quarterly updates meetings are a time to share progress on priority action steps to improve rural HPV vaccination coverage, which are available at stjude.org/hpvrural, and showcase other important work being done to achieve the same goal. You can view the recent quarterly communication with more details here.

Sara Lolley from the American Academy of Pediatrics discussed activities to improve HPV and pediatric influenza vaccination rates. Initiatives included providing education through ECHO courses, promoting local action plans via partnership grants, and a rural social media influencer campaign for communications and resource development. Resources shared include AAP’s HPV toolkit, the adolescent immunization guidelines, tools regarding the Announcement Approach by the Washington chapter of the AAP, and registration for the 2024 ECHO courses.

Kim Wolfe of the Unity Consortium extended an invitation to participate in Adolescent Immunization Action Week on April 1-5 and utilize the diverse tools created for this event. You can access more information here.

The presentations underscored the importance of collaborative efforts in addressing HPV-related cancers in rural communities, offering valuable insights and strategies for progress.

The next quarterly update meeting will be held on May 22, 2024, 1:00 – 2:00 PM CT. Register here. You can access the recording of the November 2023 quarterly updates meeting here. The February 2024 recording will be available soon and posted at stjude.org/hpvrural.

The March 2024 Path to Prevention newsletter includes additional information of relevance to rural HPV vaccination, including the monthly Wide Open Spaces article and opportunity to participate in a research study focused on examining provider incentives to increase HPV vaccination.

In addition, we want to highlight the opportunity to participate in the ACS and ACS National HPV Vaccination Roundtable training program for rural-serving health care providers. The first learning session is on March 20. Learn more and register here. If you have any questions, contact Ashley Lach, HPV Program Manager, American Cancer Society at ashley.lach@cancer.org.

Wide Open Spaces:

Supporting HPV Vaccination with Rural Communities

Retooling Provider HPV Vaccine Communication Styles to
Increase Rural HPV Vaccine Coverage

In this month’s Wide Open Spaces article, a team of researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) share strategies to improve HPV vaccination coverage with rural communities. They implemented a health care provider-led HPV vaccination recommendation intervention to achieve improvement. A presumptive recommendation style involves a provider communicating their assumption that a parent or caregiver will choose HPV vaccination for their children. Lisa Spees, PhD and Olufeyisayo “Feyi” Odebunmi, MPH, BPharm with UNC highlight the benefits of a presumptive recommendation from a health care provider to improve rural HPV vaccination coverage.

Read this month’s Wide Open Spaces article here.

We invite guest contributors to share information on how they are working to improve HPV vaccination in rural areas. If you are interested in contributing or learning more about our efforts to improve HPV vaccination with rural communities, please email us at PreventHPV@stjude.org.

“Increasing HPV vaccination in rural areas should be a key public health priority, as it would significantly reduce cancer disparities experienced by this population.” – Lisa Spees, PhD

Lisa Spees, PhD
Assistant Professor
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Dr. Lisa Spees is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at UNC’s Gillings School of Public Health. She is a health services researcher and decision scientist focused on improving care quality, equity, and values for cancer populations. Her past research has focused on identifying multi-level barriers across the cancer care continuum using both qualitative and quantitative methods. Currently, her research focuses specifically on improving rural cancer care through community-engaged research methods and cost-effectiveness analyses.

“HPV vaccination is highly preventive against HPV-related cancers, and our efforts to increase HPV vaccine coverage, especially in rural areas, should move beyond the patient to provider- and health system-level strategies.” – Feyi Odebunmi

Olufeyisayo “Feyi” Odebunmi, MPH, BPharm
PhD Candidate
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Feyi Odebunmi has a background as a trained pharmacist in Nigeria, her pharmacy work made her passionate about increasing access to care and tackling health disparities. She is pursuing a doctoral program in the Department of Health Policy and Management at UNC Chapel Hill. Feyi’s research interests are centered around cancer prevention and control and cancer care equity. She has been involved in cancer research for the past few years, leveraging her experience in mixed methods analyses, implementation science, and healthcare quality and access. She enjoys binge-watching TV shows, catching up with friends, and hiking during her leisure time.

Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are looking for partners in a research study to understand incentives.

Pay-for-performance programs are increasingly used by health systems to support quality improvement efforts and award achievement of formalized target metrics. However, according to a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) national survey of clinical staff with roles on HPV vaccination of 9–12-year-olds only 8 had ever experienced a pay-for-performance program specific to HPV vaccination rate improvement. Furthermore, only 36% reported having seen data on their HPV vaccination rates in the past year. The UNC IMPACT Incentives study aims to study the effectiveness of 12-month pay-for-performance program tied to clinic quality targets to improve HPV vaccination initiation rates.

This past year, 15 pediatric and family medicine clinics participated in wave 1 of the UNC IMPACT Incentives study and received at baseline the Announcement Approach Training (AAT) workshop, an evidence based, NCI promoted HPV vaccine communication intervention. All clinical staff engaging with HPV vaccination eligible patients aged 9-12 were invited to participate. Satisfaction with the 1-hour in-person AAT workshops was high, above 95%. Participants were also given gift cards and continuing education credits for their time.

Clinics randomized to the pay-for-performance intervention arm received the program details and select clinic leaders engaged in a short 1-hr virtual planning meeting to establish how best monthly HPV data reports would be disseminated and integrated into current clinic practices, meetings, and huddles. All clinics achieving 5%, 10%, or 30% relative increases from baseline HPV vaccine initiation rates were notified and paid predetermined amount based on target tier and clinic size.

Response to the program has been positive. One physician called the monthly HPV data reports “a powerful tool for planning improvement efforts that energized our entire clinic team to improve HPV vaccine uptake and helped us to be more intentional in HPV vaccine counseling with families and patients." Some clinics also shared how they planned to use payments when notified of target achievement, including a staff holiday party and gift cards for new residents who attended an AAT workshop.

The IMPACT Incentives study is now recruiting for the second wave of its study, to begin on a rolling basis in Spring and Summer 2024. All interested health systems and clinics are encouraged to reach out to the UNC study team at HPVFinIncentiveStudy@unc.edu.

This study has been approved by the University of North Carolina Institutional Review Board under application #22-2847.

HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast

Since the in-person meeting of the HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast in January, we have been focusing our attention on the three priority action items identified by the Southeast Roundtable members.

Develop and implement a communication campaign and messages for the Southeastern region
Develop and disseminate a plan for HPV cancer elimination in the Southeast, beginning with cervical cancer as a public health problem
Accelerate efforts to start HPV vaccination at age 9

In February, we held the first of three scheduled follow-up meetings, again focused on the priority action items. Each priority action will be led by a St. Jude HPV Cancer Prevention Program team member, and we also need the engagement and participation of Southeast Roundtable members and thought leaders across the region. If you are interested in joining as a primary champion or implementation team member or also interested in joining the planning committee and representing your jurisdiction, please email us at PreventHPV@stjude.org.

The next two follow-up meetings will take place on March 20 and April 24 from noon-1 p.m. Central Time. Links to join virtual meetings will be sent to all who registered to attend the in-person meeting. These meetings will include a quick update on activities of the Southeast Roundtable and include breakout room discussions to further discuss the three action items.

Join the Southeast Roundtable

Visit the HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast website at stjude.org/southeast-roundtable, sign up here to receive the latest information about the roundtable, and email PreventHPV@stjude.org with any questions.

Adolescent Immunization Action Week (AIAW) will take place April 1-5. The goal of AIAW is to motivate adolescents and young adults to stay up to date on their recommended vaccinations. AIAW provides healthcare providers, parents, and teens with information and tools to support this goal. These resources can be used to encourage teens to ask questions and seek out trusted sources, so they can better understand the benefits of vaccination. Staying current on recommended vaccines helps protect adolescents and young adults from serious illnesses like meningitis, HPV-related cancers, flu and COVID-19. You can help adolescents and young adults stay healthy by scheduling appointments to learn more and get vaccinated.

Access partner toolkits and additional resources here.

Immunize Arkansas is a non-profit that continues to break the barriers to overcome misconceptions about vaccinations. Executive Director Heather Mercer leads the organization, which is comprised of health experts and professionals with decades of experience working to improve the health of Arkansans. Mercer states that her goal is to “build momentum to work to get more vaccines for children providers involved to be able to provide better access to children for vaccines.”

The organization aims to raise awareness of vaccine-preventable diseases and educate healthcare providers and policymakers. This effort is being achieved through work groups focused on childhood immunizations, including HPV vaccinations, to overcome vaccine hesitancy.
The HPV Cancer Prevention Program is proud of the continuous collaborative efforts with Immunize Arkansas. Including the 3Cs Motivational Interview training and the third annual Memphis and Shelby County HPV Cancer Prevention Roundtable, both held in September 2023, they also participated in the recent HPV Roundtable of the Southeast in January 2024, and we look forward to future collaborations.

Louisiana Families for Vaccines continues to build capacity with a diverse network of community partners to promote vaccinations across the state. They recently convened an in-person coalition meeting to discuss current state and national vaccination trends, as well as strategies to improve vaccine access and education.

Maintaining high vaccination rates helps protect communities, especially vulnerable populations who are disproportionately at risk for hospitalization and death. With preventable disease outbreaks on the rise, it is more important than ever to come together to address barriers to vaccine uptake.

A wide range of interdisciplinary partners contributed valuable insights and experiences to the conversation in order to promote Louisiana-specific vaccination goals. Louisiana Families for Vaccines is proud to partner with the St. Jude HPV Cancer Prevention Program in the shared vision of eliminating HPV cancers and continues to provide boots-on-the-ground support in community outreach, education, and advocacy efforts.

The School of Dentistry at the University of Mississippi and the Center for Telehealth recently joined forces to host an impactful session as part of their Echo series in February. Participants delved into the critical topic of HPV and oral cancer with presenter Dr. Elizabeth Carr, the School of Dentistry's Population Oral Health Collaborative Director, Professor, and Chair of Dental Hygiene. Attendees engaged in discussions surrounding HPV-caused head and neck cancer. Carr provided insights into recent scientific literature concerning HPV-caused cancers, emphasizing the essential role of dental providers in both screening and prevention efforts. This event holds significant importance for Mississippi, where HPV vaccination rates for 13–17-year-olds are the lowest in the United States. The session also highlighted a recent development allowing dentists in Mississippi to administer the HPV vaccine, underscoring the growing responsibility of dental professionals in promoting vaccination and oral health. The ECHO series continues to serve as a platform for informative discussions and collaborative efforts aimed at addressing critical healthcare issues. As the fight against HPV-related diseases intensifies, events like these play a vital role in educating and empowering communities to prioritize prevention and early detection.

Tennessee State Cancer Plan, 2022-2027

The new Tennessee State Cancer Plan is updated and ready to provide guidance in the fight against cancer in Tennessee through prevention and early detection across different cancer sites, including HPV related cancers.

Under the heading of “Prevention,” HPV vaccination has an overall priority of increasing HPV vaccination rates to reduce the risk of HPV- related cancers. The strategies to get there include:

Increasing public awareness and knowledge of HPV vaccination proven to reduce the risk of cancer.
Improving HPV vaccination education levels and build capacity through training of health professionals to promote HPV vaccination for cancer prevention.
Implementing evidence-based interventions to increase HPV vaccination coverage.

Each of these strategies correlate with HPV partners in Tennessee, rural spaces and regionally in the Southeast. Take time to review the state cancer plan to see how we can move Tennessee closer to the Healthy People 2030 goal of 80% of fully vaccinated adolescents, starting at age 9.

Tennessee General Assembly HPV Vaccination Breakfast

The Tennessee General Assembly reconvened in January 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee at the Tennessee State Capitol. On February 27, the St. Jude HPV Cancer Prevention Program with the Government Affairs Office at St. Jude hosted a legislative breakfast for the Tennessee General Assembly and their staffs in the Cordell Hall State Office Building.

Attendees included Senate and House Members of the Tennessee General Assembly, legislative support staff, and invited partners of the St. Jude HPV Cancer Prevention Program. The business of the state legislature in recent years, including this year and this session, has focused on vaccination decisions. These decisions are directly related to the health of children, families, and our communities. The purpose of the breakfast was not to influence specific legislation but to inform legislators of the importance of on-time HPV vaccination for children ages 9 -12 to prevent HPV cancers in adulthood.

To further share information and increase connections, St. Jude team members, including Andrea Stubbs, administrative director and Julia Brown, program manager of the HPV Cancer Prevention Program with Rob Clark and Nicholas Thompson of the Government Affairs Office, held individual meetings with selected legislators to further build awareness and support of preventing HPV cancers in Tennessee and beyond.

Memphis and Shelby County HPV Cancer Prevention Roundtable Mid-year Meeting is March 19

The Memphis and Shelby County HPV Cancer Prevention Roundtable is hosting its in person mid-year meeting on March 19 from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Central Time at the FedEx Information Technology Center at the University of Memphis. Lunch will be provided. Free parking will be available.

This meeting will provide updates on the Memphis Roundtable’s progress and discuss how we plan to move forward with action items with the help of Memphis Roundtable members and partners. Presenters will share updates about the Memphis Roundtable’s priorities and activities, review HPV vaccination data in the Tennessee Immunization Information System (TennIIS) and Vaccines for Children program resources for increased reporting and highlight local research efforts to improve HPV vaccination coverage in Memphis. The meeting is also an exciting opportunity to learn from and network with other roundtable members.

Contact Carol Minor at PreventHPV@stjude.org with any questions.

HPV Vaccination Best Practices: The Announcement Approach Training

The American Cancer Society in partnership with ACS National HPV Vaccination Roundtable and the Indiana Immunization Coalition are launching a quarterly HPV Vaccination Best Practice Learning Program for health systems.

The first session, “The Announcement Approach Training” features renowned experts Dr. Noel Brewer and Dr. Jessica Young. In this exclusive webinar, participants will learn making effective HPV vaccine recommendations and counseling hesitant parents. This session promises invaluable insights and strategies for healthcare systems and professionals.

ACS National HPV Vaccination Roundtable Impact Report and Action

Learn more about how the ACS National HPV Vaccination Roundtable is successfully working to disseminate the best and promising practices and catalyzing key audiences to reach their goal of preventing HPV cancers in the U.S. Read more about the 2024 Impact Report and Action Plan here.

STAT Morning Rounds: Updates on HPV Vaccination Coverage

STAT’s Morning Rounds shared a recent report in their newsletter, noting that 39% of children aged 9 to 17 had received at least one dose of the HPV vaccine, with rates rising with age from 7% in the youngest kids to 57% in the oldest. The report also shared some differences in who got vaccinated based insurance and their neighborhood. Read more here.

World Health Organization First Global Forum on Elimination of Cervical Cancer

The First Global Forum brings together senior ministry officials with leading global health and development agencies, donors, academia, civil society, and others to galvanize the global movement to eliminate cervical cancer. This requires accelerated progress on the three goals set out in the World Health Organization (WHO) agenda of vaccination, screening, and treatment to reach:

90% of girls vaccinated with the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine by age 15
70% of women screened with a high-performance test by age 35 and again at 45
90% of women with cervical disease receiving treatment

Press conference and opening ceremony is March 5 at 3 p.m. Central Time. Live stream will be available. Refer to the event website for updates.

8th Annual Meeting of the HPV Cancer Center Consortium

The 8th Annual Meeting of the HPV Cancer Center Consortium will be held on April 16-17 in Lexington, Kentucky. This year’s meeting is hosted by the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center. The mission of the HPV Cancer Center Consortium is to convene cancer centers to catalyze research, foster partnerships, and advance equitable HPV vaccination to reduce the burden of HPV-related cancers. Register here.

Announcing the 2025 National HPV Conference: Save the Date

The 2025 National HPV Conference on April 15-17, 2025 will bring together professionals from all HPV disciplines and backgrounds to work towards eliminating HPV cancers. This conference is for advocates, community health workers, clinical professionals, policy and health educators, and more. Sign up here to be notified when registration opens.

The St. Jude HPV Cancer Prevention Program has an exciting opportunity to expand our team. We will hire an individual who understands and shares our objectives and impetus to improve HPV vaccination uptake in the St. Jude area and beyond.

Program Coordinator- HPV Cancer Prevention Program
We are looking for exceptional listeners, communicators and teammates with a passion to lead and serve others. Ideal candidates will be able to identify, establish and sustain community partnerships and cultivate a workplace culture of uninhibited idea generation, collaboration and problem-solving. There will be ample opportunities for professional development and growth. Click here to apply.

“Absolutely, lemon pie... a culinary delight worthy to pay homage to π Day.” – Cristóbal Valdebenito, program coordinator

“While it's not pie, I am a huge fan of carrot cake... it has to have cream cheese frosting though!” – Kasia Mitchell, program coordinator

“My favorite is sweet potato pie. It gives me a nostalgic feeling of being at my grandmother's house as a little girl, standing in the kitchen and listening to her sing while she made her famous sweet potato pies.” – Portia Knowlton, program coordinator

“Homemade banana pudding is GOAT! “– Carol Minor, program coordinator

“Key lime pie is one of my favorite desserts to make and eat.” – Karlisa Cryer, medical content writer

“My uncle’s pecan pie.“– Ursula Leflore, administrative specialist

“I love pecan pie!“ – Duha Magzoub, program coordinator

“I am a southern girl through and through, of course pecan pie is my favorite! “– Andrea Stubbs, administrative director

“I am a huge fan of cheesecake.” - Julia Brown, program manager

“Key lime pie is my favorite type of pie. Publix has the most delicious key lime pie.“ – Dr. Heather Brandt, director