Oncologists publish HPV manual for physicians
A pair of oncologists in the Program in Women's Oncology at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island recently co-authored a pocket-sized guide to the human papilloma virus (HPV) so physicians can make more accurate diagnosis and plan more effective treatment for women with the virus.
Dx/Rx: Human Papilloma Virus was written by Don S. Dizon, MD, FACP, director of medical oncology at Women & Infants and associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology and medicine at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and Ashley Stuckey, MD, of Women & Infants' Breast Health Center and The Breast Health Center at Kent Hospital. A third author was Michael L. Krychman, MD, medical director of sexual medicine at Hoag Hospital in California and executive director of the Southern California Center for Sexual Health and Survivorship Medicine.
The book - available through its publishers, Jones & Bartlett Learning in Sudbury, MA – provides precise, up-to-date information for diagnosis and treatment. Throughout the book, tables and figures summarize important clinical data and current professional society recommendations, with salient references to additional information.
"We wanted to dispel public myths surrounding HPV and, instead, provide medical caregivers with current, easily accessible and concise information in a form they could use in the office or clinic," explained Dr. Dizon, who also established the region's first Center for Sexuality, Intimacy and Fertility at Women & Infants to help women with cancer.
HPV is the most common sexually transmitted disease. Approximately 20 million Americans are currently infected with HPV and another 6 million are newly infected each year. At least 50% of men and women will get HPV at some point in their lives.
There are more than 40 types of HPV that can infect the genital areas of males and females. Strains of the HPV virus can cause genital warts and are a known cause of cancer of the cervix, vulva, vagina, penis, anus and head and neck.
