10 Reasons to beware HPV Vaccine

[Guest guest]

Hi All,

 

This article came through on another group I belong to - there is more and you

can read entire article at

 

http://www.fwdailynews.com/articles/2007/02/05/the_news_sun/features/opinion/our\

_view/ourview2-4.txt

 

Ten reasons why HPV vaccine is 'murky' issue

 

 

(Created: Sunday, February 4, 2007 8:15 AM EST)

 

 

The word " cancer " triggers emotions ranging from fear to empathy to panic. But

we cannot let our emotions cause us to spend money or create mandates without

careful research. We need to evaluate claims of drugmakers, lobbyists and

lawmakers when they seek money for cancer prevention efforts.

 

Here are 10 reasons why we are skeptical about efforts to mandate for school

girls the HPV vaccine against the sexually transmitted cervical-cancer virus.

 

10. Merck and Co. (the manufacturer of the vaccine) has funneled money through

Women in Government, an advocacy group made up of female state legislators

around the country.

 

9. Sen. Connie Lawson, the General Assembly's No. 1 advocate for the vaccine, is

a member of Women in Government.

 

8. A top official from Merck's vaccine division sits on Women in Government's

business council.

 

7. Women in Government President Susan Crosby, a former Indiana state

legislator, said the vaccine could " eliminate a cancer. " Yet Gardasil, is NOT a

cancer vaccine. It is a vaccine for a virus; specifically for four of the more

than 100 types of HPV, two of which cause 70 percent of cervical cancer in

women, and two that cause 90 percent of genital warts.

 

6. Merck could generate billions in sales if Gardasil - at $360 for the

three-shot regimen - were made mandatory across the country. Depending on how

many girls are Medicaid-eligible in each state, much of that money could come

from Medicaid dollars - even if the vaccine is recommended, not mandated.

 

5. The top 10 leading killers of women in the U.S. are heart disease, stroke,

lung cancer (more than 70,000 deaths of women per year), respiratory diseases,

Alzheimer's, breast cancer, diabetes, accidents, flu/pneumonia and colon cancer.

About 3,700 U.S. women die of cervical cancer each year; that is about 1/8th of

the number of women who die from colon cancer, the No. 10 killer of U.S. women.

 

4. Because the vaccine was only studied for 3 1/2 years, the long-term

effectiveness and safety of this vaccine has yet to be determined. It took years

for thalidomide and Vioxx (also a Merck product) to demonstrate their most

negative side effects.

 

3. Pap smears have dramatically reduced cervical cancer deaths in the U.S. But

Gardasil does not protect against all cancers of the cervix. If the number of

Pap smears go down because of women's false sense of security, the number of

cervical cancer deaths could go UP!

 

2. Scarce health care dollars should be spent in the most effective way

possible. We believe an investment of billions could be better spent in efforts

to battle the top 10 killers of women. (See No. 6 and No. 5.)

 

1. With an issue as " murky " as this, our little girls should not be guinea pigs.

 

OUR VIEW is written on a rotating basis by Grace Housholder, Dave Kurtz, Matt

Getts and Michael Marturello. Publisher Terry Housholder is also a member of the

editorial board. We welcome readers' comments.

 

Regards

Caroline Hayes

http://www.alwaysnaturallygreat.com

Certified Organic Skin, Hair, Cosmetic & Personal Care Products

 

" If we want to move toward a low polluting sustainable society we need to get

consumers to think about their purchases " David Suzuki