Circumcision May Cut Cervical Cancer Rates

Saginaw, MI

HPV Less Common In Circumcised Men

Male circumcision may slow the spread of human papillomavirus, including the types that cause cervical and other cancers, two new studies said.

Researchers in one study looked at people in South Africa. They divided a group of 18- to 24-year-old men and had half circumcised. Over 21 months, they found that there was a lower chance of high-risk HPV infection in the circumcised men.

In another study, 400 men in two U.S. cities who showed no outward signs of HPV -- such as genital warts -- were tested. About 16 percent were uncircumcised. Circumcised men were half as likely to have HPV on their skin or in their semen.

Carrie Nielson of Oregon Health and Science University, who ran the U.S. study, said the results could mean baby boys should be circumcised to lower the risk of future diseases.

Circumcision rates have been dropping rapidly in the U.S.

Other studies, especially in developing nations, have shown that circumcised men are less likely to contract HIV.

Both studies are published in the January 1 issue of the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

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