Remember when Gov. Perry mandated that all Texas girls get the HPV vaccination, you know, the human papillomavirus vaccine to help prevent cervical and throat cancers, and genital warts? The state legislature overturned Perry’s executive order, but the controversy, and the cancers, did not die.

Now, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that all 11 and 12-year-old boys, as well as girls, get the HPV vaccination.

The viruses that cause these nasty things are the most common sexually transmitted viruses in the country, and are found mostly in sexually active adolescents and young adults.

The recommendation that 11-year-olds get vaccinated isn’t as sick and wrong as it sounds. Doctors say the vaccine is most effective before kids have sex, and that it kids between the ages of nine and fifteen respond better.

It’s a tough choice for some parents: run the risk of side effects or take a chance on cancer.