Know anything about the HPV Vaccine??

Question

We're getting it in school (gardisil) and I was wondering if anyone had any personal experieces or info that would be helpful... thanls!

Answer 1

I've had the vaccine, and I fully endorse it for all women who are eligible for it.

While some people are in a tizzy over giving it to young girls, the point is you MUST give it (and all vaccines) to the person before she actually gets the virus. Otherwise, if they've already caught it or had it, there's no point in vaccinating them.

Some women ask whether they should get it if they have already been diagnosed with HPV. I (and the medical community) say yes. Gardasil protects against 4 types of HPV, and the odds of a girl already having all 4 at once are pretty slim. So if you have HPV, you can probably still gain some protection from Gardasil.

I completed my series of vaccinations many months ago. I had no side effects except the usual "OW, I just got a jab in the arm" pain. That's not so much an effect of the vaccine as it is the needle!

I have studies STDs pretty extensively. Did research on how HPV affects Southeast Asia. Wrote my masters thesis on STDs. I work for the health department. The stance stays the same: prevent diseases, protect health. Getting this vaccine will protect you against a disease that has claimed many lives already.

BTW, getting Gardasil is only one part of protecting your health. You will still need annual Pap smears to make sure your cervix is healthy (you didn't say how old you were or if you were already sexually active, so I don't know whether you will the Pap now, or whether you can wait a little longer before you get one).

Answer 2

THIS IS AN EXPERIMENTAL VACCINE.

I would never get it, nor will my daughter. My son was vaccine injured, and now we have the loving arms of big pharma, the cdc and the fda to run to. The long term effects of this vaccine are not known, so just store this in the back of your mind. If there is an increase of rogue, inexplicable fertility problems among women who received the vaccine, they will also have the loving arms of big pharma to run to. How I wish I could turn back time and rethink my decision to vaccinate my son.

Answer 3

It protects against the MOST DEADLY strains of HPV.

Women today still, sadly, die from cervical cancer, and the most deadly strains grow rapidly.

Some strains of HPV heal on their own, and some cause genital warts, but the vaccine protects against the most deadly strains/

Answer 4

Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is an experimental vaccine that targets certain sexually transmitted strains of human papillomavirus that are associated with the development of cervical cancer and genital warts. The only two HPV vaccines currently on the market are Gardasil and Cervarix[1].

Introduction

Of the more than 200 known HPV types, 37 are known to be transmitted through sexual contact. Infection with sexually transmitted HPVs is very common in adult populations worldwide. Although a few HPVs, such as types 6 and 11, can cause genital warts, most genital HPV infections come and go without ever causing any symptoms. However, lingering infections with a subset of about 19 "high-risk" HPV types can lead to the development of cervical cancer or other genital/anal cancers, and some forms of HPV, particularly type 16, have been found to be associated with a form of throat cancer.[2] Only a small percentage of women with HPV go on to develop cervical cancer.[3]

The latest generation of preventive HPV vaccines are based on hollow virus-like particles (VLPs) assembled from recombinant HPV coat proteins. The vaccines target the two most common high-risk HPVs, types 16 and 18. Together, these two HPV types cause about 70 percent of all cervical cancer. Gardasil also targets HPV types 6 and 11, which together cause about 90 percent of all cases of genital warts.[3]

Gardasil and Cervarix are designed to elicit virus-neutralizing antibody responses that prevent initial infection with the HPV types represented in the vaccine. The vaccines have been shown to offer 100 percent protection against the development of cervical pre-cancers and genital warts caused by the HPV types in the vaccine, with few or no side effects. The protective effects of the vaccine are expected to last a minimum of 4.5 years after the initial vaccination.[4]

While the study period was not long enough for cervical cancer to develop, the prevention of these cervical precancerous lesions (or dysplasias) is believed highly likely to result in the prevention of those cancers.[5]

Although a 2006 study suggests that the vaccines may offer limited protection against a few HPV types that are closely related to HPVs 16 and 18, it is clear that other high-risk HPV types can circumvent the vaccines.[4] Ongoing laboratory research is focused on the development of HPV vaccines that will offer protection against a broader range of HPV types. There is also substantial research interest in the development of therapeutic vaccines, which seek to elicit immune responses against established HPV infections and HPV-induced cancers.

Target populations

Gardasil and Cervarix are preventative (rather than therapeutic) vaccines, recommended for women who are 9 to 25 years old and have not contracted HPV. However, since it is unlikely that a woman will have already contracted all four viruses, and because HPV is primarily sexually transmitted, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended vaccination for women as old as 26.

Although HPV types 6 and 11 do not cause cervical cancer, they can cause genital warts. "Warts cause considerable discomfort and psycho-social trauma, so this makes the vaccine more attractive and also provides a reason other than altruism for men to be immunized," explains John Schiller of the National Cancer Institute.[6] HPV also causes anal and penile cancer. In the UK the drug is licensed for girls and boys aged 9 to 15 and for women aged 16 to 26. Thus, the drug has to be administered to men "off license".[7]

Implementation

In developed countries, the widespread use of good-quality cervical "Pap smear" screening programs has reduced the incidence of invasive cervical cancer, by 50% or more. The current generation of preventive vaccines offers protection against the HPV types that probably cause about 70% of cervical cancer. Therefore, experts recommend that women combine the benefits of both programs by seeking regular Pap smear screening, even after vaccination.

Pap smear screening is too expensive for routine use in developing countries and HPV-induced cervical cancer remains the fifth most common cancer in women worldwide.[8] Thus HPV vaccines are most urgently needed in developing countries. With a cost of $360, Gardasil is the most expensive vaccine ever developed. The vaccine will be too expensive for initial use in developing countries unless substantial subsidies are offered. Merck has announced that it intends to support programs to offer Gardasil to disadvantaged women worldwide.[9] The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has also expressed interest in helping make preventive HPV vaccines available to women in developing countries. Through the PATH organization, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve the health of people worldwide by advancing technologies, the Gates Foundation has donated $27.8 million to implement HPV vaccines. Starting in January 2007, women in India, Peru, Uganda and Vietnam will be receiving the vaccine.

History of HPV vaccines

The vaccine was developed in parallel by researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center, the University of Rochester, Queensland University in Australia, and the U.S. National Cancer Institute. Intellectual property resulting from the discovery has been contentious. Following over 10 years of adjudication, the European Patent Office awarded the controlling patent for the cervical cancer vaccine to the University of Rochester. Following this, the U.S. Patent Office recognized Georgetown University as having the dominant patent claim in the United States, based on filing date.[10] [11]

In 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first preventive HPV vaccine, marketed by Merck & Co. under the tradename Gardasil. Early in 2007, GlaxoSmithKline filed for approval in the United States for a similar preventive HPV vaccine, known as Cervarix. In the European Union, GlaxoSmithKline filed the application for approval in March 2006.

Controversy

More than eighteen U.S. states and the District of Columbia are considering making HPV vaccination mandatory for young girls entering middle or high schools.[12] New Hampshire has adopted a voluntary program, in which it supplies the vaccine free of charge on a triage basis.[13]

Texas Governor Rick Perry, without legislative approval, issued an executive order on 2 February,2007 mandating Gardasil be given to all school girls entering sixth grade, beginning September 2008. It being a patent-protected vaccine, Merck is the sole producer of Gardasil. On April 25, 2007, the Texas legislature overruled Governor Perry's order, forbidding mandatory vaccination until at least 2011.[14]

Several conservative groups in the U.S. have publicly opposed the concept of making HPV vaccination mandatory for pre-adolescent girls, asserting that making the vaccine mandatory is a violation of parental rights. Both the Family Research Council and the group Focus on the Family expressed concerns about this.[15][16]

Other critics, including socially conservative religious groups, warn that the vaccine will encourage promiscuity by making it seem safer. Many women's rights organizations disagree. Dr. Christine Peterson, director of the University of Virginia's Gynecology Clinic, said "The presence of seat belts in cars doesn't cause people to drive less safely. The presence of a vaccine in a person's body doesn't cause them to engage in risk-taking behavior they would not otherwise engage in." [17]

Some individuals and groups have raised similar objections to the HPV vaccine that have been raised to other vaccines (see vaccine controversy).

Possible adverse reactions after vaccine

As of May 11 2007 1,637 adverse vaccination reactions to Gardasil have been reported to the Food and Drug Administration.[18] Most appeared minor, but there are three reported deaths after the HPV vaccine. A child, a 12-year-old girl, and a 19-year-old woman died of heart problems and/or blood clotting.[19] Full details are not available and it is not known if these are related to the vaccine. Of the 42 pregnant women who received the HPV vaccine, 18 experienced side effects. They range from spontaneous abortion to fetal abnormalities.[20] These reports are from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System database. "When evaluating data from VAERS, it is important to note that for any reported event, no cause and effect relationship has been established... VAERS collects data on any adverse event following vaccination, be it coincidental or truly caused by a vaccine." [21]

Therapeutic HPV vaccines

In addition to preventive vaccines, such as Gardasil and Cervarix, laboratory research and several human clinical trials are focused on the development of therapeutic HPV vaccines. In general these vaccines focus on the main HPV oncogenes, E6 and E7. Since expression of E6 and E7 is required for promoting the growth of cervical cancer cells (and cells within warts), it is hoped that immune responses against the two oncogenes might eradicate established tumors.[22]