let me preface this by saying that i am seventeen && have had two of the shots so far. i will go in for the third on february 9th. i got my first shot almost immediately after gaurdisil was approved for use or whatever. four years ago, my cousin was diagnosed with stage 4 cervical cancer. she's better now.

ideally, girls should get the shot before becomming sexually active. this, i believe, is to assure that they haven't already contracted HPV. however, this does NOT mean that a girl who has been sexually active cannot or should not still get the shots. since i am much younger than 26, i wasn't told much about the age limit.

as to pap smears and examinations of that nature, i know of almost no other girl my own age who has had one. actually, most of them are 18.