Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccination and Cervical Cancer Prevention: Ghanaian Adolescent Students' Perspectives Through Focus Group Discussion

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine effectively reduces HPV-related cancers. Understanding the primary target populations' perceptions of HPV vaccination is critical. We examined the perspectives of Ghanaian adolescent students on HPV vaccination. We conducted four focus group discussions among students from Junior High and Senior High Schools in the Ashanti Region of Ghana. Ten open-ended questions guided the discussions. Two independent coders transcribed and analyzed the data thematically using NVivo software. Fifty-nine students (mean age: 14.97 years, SD = 1.55) participated in the study. Themes emerged from the discussions included: (a) low knowledge of HPV vaccines but a strong understanding of the benefits of vaccines. (b) Barriers to accepting HPV vaccine include perceived side effects (e.g., pain, fear of injection, potential death), misconceptions (e.g., infertility, "destroying the womb," growing lean), and vaccine cost. (c) Facilitators to accepting vaccines include vaccine effectiveness, normative beliefs (e.g., parents, doctors, and friends), exposure to school-based vaccine education (e.g., seminars), and altruistic reasons (e.g., protecting others from infection). (d) No adolescent-parent communication, but adolescents indicated a willingness to communicate with parents when received accurate information. These findings underscore the need for targeted HPV education campaigns to improve vaccine uptake.