Tapsearch Com EditorSpectator debunks HPV hysteria
March 24th 2007 15:17
I did the same myself previously. (More here.)
Some interesting new material though:
"Gardasil is not all it's cracked up to be. A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association finds that among women ages 14 to 24, the rate of all 37 types of sexually transmitted HPV combined is 33.8% -- much lower than the 50% figure cited on Merck's website. More importantly, the rates for HPV 16 and 18 -- the two types responsible for 70% of all cervical cancers -- are astronomically lower: only 1.5% and 0.8%, respectively...Approximately 75% of infections in adults and 90% of those in adolescents disappear on their own."
This age difference explains why, as I said before, women who get HPV-caused cervical cancer tend to contract HPV at older ages -- even though HPV is most common among younger women who have more sex with different people. A vaccine only guaranteed for five years, given to super-young girls, is a dumb idea.
Finally, great argument:
"What if the vaccine lulls young women into a false sense of security? Gardasil only protects against the viruses responsible for 70% of cervical cancers, and women may not realize the necessity of regular Pap tests even when they've been vaccinated. When women go for an annual Pap test, they are getting a general check-up, not just a test for cervical cancer. As a result, many pre-cancerous conditions for anything from cervical cancer to breast cancer may go undetected, before it's too late."
By Robert VerBruggen
Some interesting new material though:
"Gardasil is not all it's cracked up to be. A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association finds that among women ages 14 to 24, the rate of all 37 types of sexually transmitted HPV combined is 33.8% -- much lower than the 50% figure cited on Merck's website. More importantly, the rates for HPV 16 and 18 -- the two types responsible for 70% of all cervical cancers -- are astronomically lower: only 1.5% and 0.8%, respectively...Approximately 75% of infections in adults and 90% of those in adolescents disappear on their own."
This age difference explains why, as I said before, women who get HPV-caused cervical cancer tend to contract HPV at older ages -- even though HPV is most common among younger women who have more sex with different people. A vaccine only guaranteed for five years, given to super-young girls, is a dumb idea.
Finally, great argument:
"What if the vaccine lulls young women into a false sense of security? Gardasil only protects against the viruses responsible for 70% of cervical cancers, and women may not realize the necessity of regular Pap tests even when they've been vaccinated. When women go for an annual Pap test, they are getting a general check-up, not just a test for cervical cancer. As a result, many pre-cancerous conditions for anything from cervical cancer to breast cancer may go undetected, before it's too late."
By Robert VerBruggen
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