A new study sheds light on a counter-intuitive phenomenon: White, well-to-do teens are less likely to get an HPV vaccination than girls in low-income, predominantly minority communities.

The research, published last week in the medical journal, Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, found that 53 percent of teenage girls received a dose of the HPV vaccine in 2011 and 2012.

The rate was highest among girls in predominantly Latino communities, 69 percent of whom received a dose of the vaccine, which is credited with reducing the risk of cervical cancer caused by HPV.

In comparison, only 54 percent of girls who lived in predominantly African American communities received the vaccine and only 50 percent of girls from predominantly white areas were vaccinated.

Regardless of race and ethnicity, 61 percent of girls in communities with significant poverty (at least 20 percent living in poverty) received the vaccine, compared to 52.4 percent of girls in less poverty-stricken areas.

"The higher HPV vaccination rates among girls living in poor communities and majority Hispanic communities, which also tend to have high poverty rates, are encouraging because these communities often have higher cervical cancer rates,” said Kevin Henry, a Temple University professor who authored the study.

Dr. Jane Delgado, president of the National Alliance for Hispanic Health, told the Guardian that the high vaccination rates among Hispanics may be due to a lower level of suspicion about vaccines in the Latino community than elsewhere in the U.S.

The overall vaccination rates are still far lower than experts hope for. Teen boys and girls are supposed to receive three doses of the HPV vaccine, and currently only 40 percent of girls and 22 percent of boys get all three.

Instant Insights /

Low-income minority teens more likely to get HPV vaccination

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