Thursday, August 21, 2008

Researchers Question Efficacy of HPV Vaccine

Sexual revolutionaries desperately want children to be free to have sex at the earliest ages. The HPV vaccine is a key element of the strategy to sexualize children, along with condoms, the pill, the day-after pill, and abortion -- all without parental consent.

Below are excerpts from two articles; note the "media spin" resulting from the same study.

-- From "Study: HPV vaccine by age 21 a sound public health investment" by Liz Szabo, USA TODAY 8/20/08

A new economic analysis shows that the HPV vaccine, which protects against the viruses that cause most cervical cancers and genital warts, could be a good financial investment in public health if given to those who have the most to gain: preadolescent girls and women up to age 21.

Authors of the study, in today's New England Journal of Medicine, measured the Gardasil vaccine's value by calculating the cost of giving one person an extra healthy year of life and balancing the expense of vaccinations with the benefits of avoiding cancer, death and related expenses.

More than half of girls have been exposed to HPV by the time they finish high school, says Carol Baker, professor of pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and a member of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

Because some women could still be protected, it makes economic sense to offer "catch-up" shots to women up to age 21, but not to older women, Kim says. The vaccine was approved in 2006 for women up to age 26.

-- From "Researchers Question If HPV Vaccine Is Worth the Risk" by Sharyn Alfonsi, ABC News, 8/20/08

First, Gardasil's long-term effectiveness is unclear. Because cervical cancer takes years to develop, critics say the current information is insufficient to determine whether Gardasil works.

"The overall effect of the vaccines on cervical cancer remains unknown," Dr. Carolyn J. Haug, the Journal of Norwegian Medical Association's editor, wrote in the New England Journal editorial. "The real impact of HPV vaccination on cervical cancer will not be observable for decades."

Gardasil is also expensive, costing about $400 to $1,000 for the necessary three doses of the vaccine. Studies have not proven how long the immunity will last and whether or not additional shots will be needed, which would raise the cost even higher.

And it's not a slam dunk. The vaccine only protects against some of the viruses that cause cervical cancer, so women still need regular pap screenings. And some doctors said that a traditional pap screen may be more effective.

These remaining questions have prompted some doctors to ask if it's worth it for girls to get vaccinated in the first place.

"Most of the information people have right now leads them to believe that if they're vaccinated with Gardasil, they're protected for life, and that's just not true," said Dr. Diane Harper of Dartmouth College.

There is also the issue of side effects. FDA records reveal that, since Gardasil's approval, nearly 9,000 girls had "bad health events" after receiving their shots. These included 78 reported outbreaks of genital warts, 18 deaths and six cases of Guillain Barre Syndrome, which can result in paralysis. It is unknown whether there are unseen side effects, like decreasing the body's ability to fight off other strains of the HPV virus.