HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast

By coming together, the Southeast Roundtable will focus on:

• Current conditions surrounding HPV vaccination and HPV cancer prevention
• Replicating HPV vaccination success across the Southeast
• Overcoming challenges facing HPV vaccination
• Capitalizing on opportunities to improve HPV vaccination coverage in each state and the overall region.

The Southeast Roundtable also works to understand the current context and conditions, share success stories, creatively problem-solve challenges, and act accordingly to take on the challenge of too many missing out on HPV cancer prevention.

In January 2024, the HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast held an in-person meeting, drawing 100 participants from 14 states and jurisdictions at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Learn more about the activities leading up to the annual meeting in this recording. During the meeting, attendees actively discussed, debated, and voted on evidence-based interventions, collectively identifying the top three strategies to enhance HPV vaccination rates in the region.

The main activities of the Southeast Roundtable center around three priority actions:

Communication: Develop and implement a communication campaign and messages for the Southeastern region 

Elimination: Develop and disseminate a plan for HPV cancer elimination in the Southeast, beginning with cervical cancer as a public health problem

Start at Age 9: Accelerate efforts to start HPV vaccination at age 9 

Each priority is driven by dedicated implementation teams made up of co-leaders and primary champions who meet monthly to advance the outlined action steps. These teams lead the charge in executing targeted activities, interventions, and programs designed to achieve the Roundtable’s goals. We are proud of the progress made so far and look forward to sharing updates and resources with you.

We also encourage active involvement from Roundtable members and thought leaders throughout the region. If you are interested in joining an implementation team, please reach out to us at PreventHPV@stjude.org.  Your participation is vital to our collective success!

Register: 2025 Southeastern Roundtable Virtual Annual Meeting

The HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast will host its 2025 annual meeting virtually on January 21, 22, and 23 from 10 am-12 pm CT. Register for one or all three of the meetings – and we hope you will join us for all three. We have so much to share and so much to learn and do to improve HPV cancer prevention across the region.

The agenda for each day of the annual meeting will be focused on one of the three priority actions of the Southeast Roundtable: 1) regional communication campaign, 2) elimination of HPV cancers starting with cervical cancer as a public health problem, and 3) starting HPV vaccination at age 9.

• January 21: Communication
• January 22: Elimination
• January 23: Age 9

Each day, the two-hour meeting will begin with a review of accomplishments over the past year and future plans followed by lightning talks delivered by subject matter experts to revisit potential opportunities for the Southeast Roundtable to consider for 2025. Then, moderated breakout sessions will allow for discussion about the selected priority action and possible next steps as well as consider other possible priority actions to be explored. Specific agendas for each day with confirmed speakers will be released before the end of 2024.

If you have any questions, email us at PreventHPV@stjude.org.

This virtual training took place on June 6, 2024 and explored Operation Wipe Out, Alabama’s statewide action plan to eliminate cervical cancer, as a model for implementing policy to eliminate cervical cancer in the Southeast. Featured presenters were Isabel C. Scarinci, PhD, MPH, Professor, Vice-Chair for Global and Rural Women's Health, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Senior Advisor for Globalization and Cancer, O'Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, and Nancy Wright, MPH Director, Cancer Prevention and Control Division, Alabama Department of Health.

The HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast held an in-person meeting in January 2024, drawing 100 participants from 12 Southeastern states, and Puerto Rico and Washington D.C. During the meeting, attendees actively discussed, debated, and voted on evidence-based interventions, collectively identifying the top three strategies to enhance HPV vaccination rates in the region. The three priority action steps that the Southeast Roundtable will focus on are listed below:

1.  Develop and implement a communication campaign and messages for the Southeastern region
2.  Develop and disseminate a plan for HPV cancer elimination in the Southeast, beginning with cervical cancer as a public health problem.
3.  Accelerate efforts to start HPV vaccination at age 9

The HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast hosted three virtual meetings to reconvene southeastern states and improve HPV vaccination coverage.  Each meeting included state updates and a moderated discussion followed by action steps from Roundtable members. 

The HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast held a second virtual training experience on November 15 – Navigating Conversations: Effective Communication Strategies for HPV Vaccination in the Southeast. In this virtual training, Bob Bednarczyk, PhD, Emory University, presented on effective communication strategies for HPV Vaccination and addressing HPV vaccine myths, Jennifer Cunningham-Erves, PhD, Vanderbilt University presented on a tailored, mobile phone-based intervention to build HPV vaccine confidence among parents and Beth Sundstrom, PhD, College of Charleston presented on communication strategies for HPV vaccination in the southeast, specifically building confidence and resilience. The training was moderated by Francine Walton, MPH. O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

The HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast held a virtual training experience on September 13 – Digging Deeper into HPV Vaccination Data. In this virtual training, Cassandra (Sandy) Pingali, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and lead author of the MMWR publication, presented on the NIS-Teen data with Courtnay Londo of the American Immunization Registry Association and Casey Daniel, PhD of the University of South Alabama presented on HPV vaccination data sources nationally and regionally. The training was moderated by Caree McAfee, MA, CHES with the University of Kentucky - Markey Cancer Center.

Addressing HPV Vaccination Gaps in the Southeastern U.S. (2/27/2023)

 This seminar leading up to International HPV Awareness Day 2023 focused on gaps in HPV vaccination coverage in southeastern states with a focus on opportunities for action. The seminar was moderated by Fedoria Rugless, PhD with presentations given by Donna L. Williams, MS, MPH, DrPH, Pamela C. Hull, PhD, and Beth L. Sundstrom, PhD, MPH. Co-organizers included the HPV Vaccination Roundtable of the Southeast and the Memphis and Shelby County HPV Cancer Prevention Roundtable.

Sign up to receive the latest information about the roundtable, and email PreventHPV@stjude.org with any questions.