Barbara Schuler founder and CEO of Vax 2 Stop Cancer.By June Mathews
Barbara Schuler is a cancer survivor whose determination to win the battle saw her through. That same determination later motivated her to fight for cancer prevention on behalf of others.
When she learned that the human papillomavirus vaccine, which has proven effective in preventing six kinds of cancers, was widely available but that vaccination rates were low, Schuler set out to change that.
That’s when she became founder and CEO of Vax 2 Stop Cancer, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing cancer by expanding the use of the HPV vaccine through education, public awareness and advocacy.
“Most people think HPV can cause only cervical cancer, but it can also cause oropharyngeal, vaginal, vulvar, penile and anal cancers,” said Schuler, who holds a master’s degree in public health. “But we have an FDA-approved vaccine that can prevent over 90 percent of these cancers, which is equivalent to 33,000 cases yearly in the U.S. alone.”
One big problem with the low vaccination rates, she learned, is persuading parents to have their children vaccinated. The HPV vaccine is most effective when administered between the ages of 9 and 13 and is approved up to age 45. But HPV is associated with sexual contact, a subject most parents aren’t prepared to consider in relation to their children.
“If we had a vaccine for anything that didn’t have to do with the genital area and mouth cancers, parents would have their children lined up around the block,” Schuler said. “But parents tend to think their child doesn’t need the HPV vaccine because their child isn’t going to have any kind of intimate contact before they’re married. And that may be true, but even then, HPV is so common that the odds of their spouse having it are high.”
Statistics show that 80 million people in the U.S. are currently infected with at least one strain of HPV, making it more prevalent than the common cold but without symptoms. Experts estimate that 85% of women and 90% of men will be infected with at least one strain of the virus in their lifetimes.
“Pretty much, if you’re ever sexually active, you’re going to have the virus,” said Schuler. “Most people will be rid of it within two years, but some infections are persistent and can lead to multiple types of cancer.”
Vax 2 Stop Cancer provides two education programs. One is for training pediatricians and family practice physicians to help increase HPV vaccination rates across the state. Training takes place in private practices, in health departments and at federally qualified health centers. The second program is an online and on-demand program for dentists, hygienists and pediatric dentists.
“Our goal going forward is to have an OB/GYN program and to work with ENTs and pharmacists. There are many providers that can work with us on this,” Schuler said.
Aiming to Save 4 Million
Since 2020, Vax 2 Stop Cancer has trained 410 providers and staff at 98 practices in 34 Alabama counties to increase their HPV vaccination rates.
“Because Alabama has low vaccination rates, we have high cancer rates,” Schuler said. “We’re second in the nation for cervical cancer mortality, fifth for cervical cancer incidence, sixth for oral pharyngeal cancer mortality and twenty-second for oral pharyngeal cancer incidence.”
Thus, Vax 2 Stop Cancer’s goal is to prevent more than 4 million cancer deaths by 2047 and improve the experience of people who are touched by cancer. In the meantime, Schuler will keep finding ways to inform parents about the dangers the HPV viruses pose and encourage them to get their children vaccinated.
“Of the most studied vaccines, the HPV vaccine is extremely safe,” she said. “The side effects are like any other vaccine, including headache, redness and swelling at the site, and/or mild fever. There are myths, however, that the HPV vaccine causes cancer. It doesn’t. Or that it causes women to be infertile, which it doesn’t. What can make women infertile is if they have to be treated for cervical cancer.”
Schuler hopes that Vax 2 Stop Cancer is soon able to take its message into schools and reach more parents. She also would like to see Alabama make the HPV vaccine mandatory.
“I don’t know that it ever will be,” she said. “Vaccines have become so politicized, and some parents have lost their faith in them. Either they don’t think they’re necessary or they don’t know what to believe, so we just keep fighting. That’s all we can do.”
Vax 2 Stop Cancer partners with organizations locally, nationally and internationally. It continues to work with the HPV Coalition, a nationwide advocacy group working with the White House on Biden’s Cancer Moonshot initiative. The goal of this initiative is to prevent more than 4 million cancer deaths by 2027 and improve the experience of people who are touched by cancer.
Trying to work side-by-side with the Cancer Moonshot goal, Schuler will keep finding ways to inform parents about the dangers HPV poses and encourage them to get their children vaccinated.
For more information, visit vax2stopcancer.org or find the organization’s Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn pages.
English (US)