Reducing your risk for oropharyngeal cancer

You may lower your risk of developing oropharyngeal cancer by doing the following.

HPV can infect the oropharynx, especially if you have oral sex with multiple sexual partners. The HPV vaccine available in Canada for prevention of oropharyngeal cancer is Gardasil 9. This vaccine helps protect against infection with HPV types 6, 11, 16, 18, 31, 33, 45, 52 and 58.

Gardasil 9 is approved in Canada for people 9 to 45 years of age to prevent oropharyngeal cancer and other head and neck cancers caused by these types of HPV.

Get vaccinated or have your children vaccinated through school-based programs where available. If Talk to your doctor about which vaccine is right for you, when you should have it and vaccination programs in your area.

The only sure way to prevent an HPV infection is to completely avoid any genital contact with another person. If you are young, delay having sex. If you are sexually active, you can lower your risk by:

• having as few sexual partners as possible
• being in a monogamous relationship with someone who hasn’t had a lot of sexual partners
• using a condom

Using a condom can lower the risk of an HPV infection if the condom is put on before skin-to-skin sexual contact. But areas not covered by a condom still allow some skin-to-skin contact during sexual activity. So using condoms will lower the risk of HPV an infection but not eliminate it.

Avoiding tobacco in any form is an effective way to prevent oropharyngeal cancer. This includes cigarettes, cigars, pipes, chewing tobacco and betel quid with tobacco.

Don’t start using tobacco in any form. If you currently use tobacco, get help to quit. Quitting lowers your risk for oropharyngeal cancer. Former tobacco users have a lower risk than current users. The risk of cancer decreases with the number of years since you quit.

Drinking alcohol increases your risk of developing oropharyngeal cancer. Drinking alcohol together with smoking tobacco increases the risk for oropharyngeal and other head and neck cancers more than either one alone. To reduce your cancer risk, it's best not to drink alcohol. Canada's Guidance on Alcohol and Health outlines the health risks of alcohol and can help you make an informed decision on whether you drink and how much.

If you choose to drink alcohol, keep your cancer risk as low as possible by having no more than 2 standard drinks a week. The less alcohol you drink, the lower your cancer risk.

Find out more about how to limit alcohol.

Some studies show that eating a diet high in vegetables and fruit may offer some protection against oropharyngeal cancer. Vegetables and fruit play a key role in a healthy diet. Eat a variety of vegetables and fruit every day.

Some people can have a higher than average risk for oropharyngeal cancer. Talk to your doctor about your risk. If you are at higher than average risk, you may need to visit your doctor more often to check for oropharyngeal cancer. Your doctor will recommend what tests you should have and how often you should have them.

Learn what you can do to prevent cancer.