begins Friday.

Each year in the United States.

More than 11,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer.

About 4,000 women will die from it.

One of the most common causes of cervical cancer is human papillomavirus or HPV.

HPV can also cause several other forms of cancer experts at the UK Market Cancer Center say the good news is it's preventable.

They recently hosted an HPV Cancer Center consortium aimed at finding ways to increase HPV vaccination rates.

This and tonight's medical news.

>> It could be stands for human papilloma virus and it's a very, very common virus infection that about really a out of 10 people get it sometime in their life.

The reason why it's important to talk about HPV and learn about it is because it can cause 6 types of cancer.

What people don't realize that they think they may have heard about cervical cancer, but their mind about the other ones.

But it really kind of 6, 6 of them in the most common of head and neck cancer that affects men and women.

So it's not just cervical cancer.

Kentucky has among the highest rates of cervical cancer in the country is about 200 women a year in Kentucky that get it.

And we also have among the highest rates of head and neck cancer with about 100 men and women getting head neck cancer each year in Kentuckyian the vast majority of those convicted people be prevented with HPV vaccine that rates of cervical cancer in head and neck.

Cancer and other cancers are highest in rural areas can come in, you know, compared to cities.

And but unfortunately, right now, the HPV vaccination rates are lower in rural areas.

So with a greatest need in rural areas.

But so far, not as much vaccination has been a general area.

So we want to work with our partners and our different role commute across the state and see how we can partner together in that effort.

We really have the tools in our tool box that we need to to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem in this country.

And that doesn't mean 0 several cancer, but it means for the reducing it to a very, very low number.

And the 3 tools that we had or HPV vaccine several cancer screening and follow-up on screening.

And if we can get up to 90% and each of those 90% vaccinated 90% screen than 90% follow-up.

Then we can virtually eliminate cervical cancer.

So doctors routinely recommend the HPV vaccine about ages 11 12, the same time.

The other vaccines are also do.

But parents can vote started early at age 9.

Some parents prefer to spread the vaccines out to maybe get one a year and knocking about same time are some I prefer to get it when they're in there for 11 or 12 year-old check out all 3 vaccines together.

But if you didn't get vaccinated on it they're older teenagers, young adults.

You can catch up if you didn't get the vaccine earlier of 3.26.

In.

But it can get the vaccine.

And then after it went that age between 27 in 45 years old people can talk to your doctor and see if they still need to get the vaccine in that age.

If it would be helpful for them or not.

The screening start to age.

21, all women need to start a 21.

And up to 8.64.

It's it can either be 3 or 5 years opinion which type of screening you do.

So we have the traditional pap tests to that most people know about.

And there's also a HPV test now because since HPV infection causes cervical cancer, they can just has to have an infection.

And that's a kind of a really exciting development because now they've approved that women can do the tests themselves so far to have to in the doctor's office.

But in the future that we hopefully approving it so we can to the test at home as well.

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