SINCE 1828
human papillomavirus
nounDefinition of human papillomavirus
: any of numerous papillomaviruses (as of the genera Alphapapillomavirus, Betapapillomavirus, and Gammapapillomavirus) that cause various human papillomas (such as genital warts and plantar warts) and include some associated with the production of human cancer
—abbreviation HPV
Examples of human papillomavirus in a Sentence
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For example, human papillomavirus, which causes nearly all cases of cervical cancers, does its dirty work by integrating its genes into the chromosomes of cervical cells, ultimately causing cancer. — David P. Barash, WSJ, "‘The Tangled Tree’ Review: From Tiny Seeds," 9 Aug. 2018 Every year, nearly 34,000 cases of cancer in the US can be attributed to HPV, the human papillomavirus . — Cathleen O'grady, Ars Technica, "Cultural barriers still stand in the way of HPV vaccine uptake," 4 Nov. 2018 Oftentimes, cancer is caused by infectious viruses such as hepatitis B and human papillomavirus, which can be prevented with a vaccine. — Molly Sullivan, sacbee, "How do you get a skeptical patient to test for cancer? UCD, health center target cultural barriers," 2 June 2018 Since 2006, the vaccine for human papillomavirus — the leading cause of a number of cancers — has been available. — Anna Groves, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Want to prevent your children from getting cancer? Doctors push HPV vaccine," 9 July 2018 More than 100 different strains of the human papillomavirus have been identified. — Ashley Andreou, STAT, "New Gardasil ad campaign gets it (mostly) right. It shouldn’t have taken a decade," 18 June 2018 While clicking through Snapchat the other day, an ad for Merck’s new Versed campaign for Gardasil, its vaccine against the human papillomavirus (HPV), stopped my thumb in its tracks. — Ashley Andreou, STAT, "New Gardasil ad campaign gets it (mostly) right. It shouldn’t have taken a decade," 18 June 2018 Colorectal cancer has not been linked to the human papillomavirus (HPV), which can cause anal cancer, as well as cervical, throat, penile and other types of cancer. — Author: Laurie Mcginley, Anchorage Daily News, "Colorectal cancer screening should start at age 45, American Cancer Society says," 30 May 2018 Colorectal cancer has not been linked to the human papillomavirus (HPV), which can cause anal cancer, as well as cervical, throat, penile, and other types of cancer. — Laurie Mcginley, BostonGlobe.com, "Colorectal cancer screening should start at age 45, not 50, American Cancer Society says," 30 May 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'human papillomavirus.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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