The Gardasil series of shots are available to young men and women ages 12-26. The younger the better! By getting the shots prior to becoming sexually active they will be protecting the person from the strains of HPV which causes genital warts, anal cancer, ovarian cancer and oral cancer. As far as I know, the majority of adults already have been exposed to HPV at one point or another. The jury is still out on how easily HPV gets passed around (doorknobs, toilet seats, very causal contact like shaking hands, etc). While many adult have been HPV+ at one point or another, most can clear this and have no ill effects while a small percentage cant clear the HPV and it will go on to cause them serious health problems.