Male circumcision cuts risk of cancer-causing virus
A report says circumcision protects men from genital herpes and a virus that causes genital warts and cancer.
The report in the New England Journal of Medicine adds to the debate over whether men - and newborn boys - should be circumcised to protect their health and perhaps the health of their future sexual partners.
The findings from two trials in Uganda build on related research showing that circumcision cuts a man's risk of HIV infection through heterosexual intercourse by more than 50 per cent.
They also come at a time when circumcision rates are declining in places like the United States, even as evidence mounts that the practice can provide important health benefits.
"Medically supervised adult male circumcision is a scientifically proven method for reducing a man's risk of acquiring HIV infection through heterosexual intercourse," said Anthony Fauci, of the National Institutes of Health in the United States, which funded the study.
"This new research provides compelling evidence that circumcision can provide some protection against genital herpes and human papillomavirus infections as well."
The human papillomavirus, or HPV, is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the world. It causes cervical cancer, which kills 300,000 women globally every year.
The combined results of the studies looking at more than 3,000 men showed circumcision reduced the risk of herpes by 25 per cent and of HPV by one third.
HPV also causes anal and penile cancers.
Circumcision also appears to reduce the odds of genital warts, but had no effect on the incidence of syphilis, the researchers added.
Since 2007, circumcision has been promoted by the World Health Organisation and the UN Program on HIV/AIDS as a way to reduce the risk of AIDS in areas where heterosexual transmission is high.
When done in children, the operation reduces the chance of urinary tract infections and phimosis, a problem with the foreskin.
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