It is so very unfortunate that anyone have to experience these symptoms. As a number of these posts are listed as anonymous I have no idea if I am responding to one or several people so I will make my statements general.
Most parents would like to believe that their daughters are not having intimate relationships at such an early age but many are. This is why the vaccine is recommended to begin at 9 in the hopes that the protection would be "in place" once beginning intimate relations. Unfortunately too much information is not provided which leads to assumptions and further dissemination of incorrect information.
One of you said "many won't be having sex for another 5 years". This is another misconception. You do not have to engage in sex to contract HPV. What we (back in the day) would refer to as "petting" with skin to skin contact is all that is required for transmission of the virus. There is also increasing research showing that foamites (inert objects) are capable of transmitting the virus. One study has not ruled out kissing as the means of transmission of HPV induced oral cancers.
It was also stated that cervical cancer occurs in a woman's 60's. This is not true. The peak incidence of CC is in between 34 to 54. However larger numbers of younger women in their 20' and 30's are now getting CC. And it's not just cervical cancer. HPV also causes vaginal, vulvar, anal, lung, head/neck and oral cancers. The more research being done the more cancers are being linked to this virus and it has moved past the "sex" arena.
It was also mentioned that women get CC without HPV, true, about 0.3%. 99.7% of cervical cancers ARE caused by HPV. As for the comment that Gardasil is to prevent HPV and not cervical cancer is a moot point. If HPV causes 99.7% of cervical cancers and Gardasil can help prevent against the strains that cause 70% of those, then yes it does prevent (indirectly) cervical cancer and every other cancer those two strains may cause.
I haven't seen any "scare tactics" utilized regarding the vaccine and would be interested to know where they can be found. Just as dangerous as potential side effects can be with any vaccination, what is just as dangerous in my opinion, is the dissemination of erroneous non-fact based information spread for the purpose of alarming people. Many of the comments above do just that. CC is STILL the second leading cause of death worldwide among women.
Someone questioned me about Merck continuing testing on the vaccine and that they're not sure that's true. Why don't you do some research and find out the true information. Merck has all of these reports available and all you have to do is contact them. You can look at the statistics, when these studies were performed and where and a host of other information. Then make your decisions, but not based on what someone thinks is true. You have to know it to be true, or not. Becoming educated and your own best advocate is my primary purpose regarding HPV. Sometimes it means taking the time to research these things ourselves since many physicians are ill equiped to provide accurate information either.
Whoever said HPV is preventable in other ways simply does not have the facts, yet is presenting this as such in her post. If she is referring to celibacy, men asymptomatically transmit HPV to women, this is how we get it. There is no test for men and so how do you determine if you celibate daughters future husband has HPV or not? You can't. And given the fact that 80% of sexually active adults will have acquired HPV it's more than likely he WILL have it and pass it along to your daughter even if she remained celibate. As for condoms, they can reduce but not prevent transmission of HPV. The most appauling comment above is "many women who get cervical cancer do not have HPV" These "many women" only equate to, as mentioned earlier, 0.3%. This is misleading without providing the true and accurate facts.
And while CC may not be an epidemic in this country it is not only an epidemic but the #1 cause of death in many under developed countries throughout the world. In the US, new cases of dysplasia/cancer occur at rate of approximately 300,000 a year. That is more than the number of lung cancers diagnosed annually in this country.
I understand peoples upsetment, especially as a parent of a young daughter myself. However, having dealt with the ravages of HPV and what it can do to a person it is all about weighing the risks after becoming informed. I just completed radiation therapy, brachtherapy (two days ago) which is radiation seed implants and have another course of chemo to go. I certainly would not want my daughter to experience any of THIS!
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It is so very unfortunate that anyone have to experience these symptoms. As a number of these posts are listed as anonymous I have no idea if I am responding to one or several people so I will make my statements general.
Most parents would like to believe that their daughters are not having intimate relationships at such an early age but many are. This is why the vaccine is recommended to begin at 9 in the hopes that the protection would be "in place" once beginning intimate relations. Unfortunately too much information is not provided which leads to assumptions and further dissemination of incorrect information.
One of you said "many won't be having sex for another 5 years". This is another misconception. You do not have to engage in sex to contract HPV. What we (back in the day) would refer to as "petting" with skin to skin contact is all that is required for transmission of the virus. There is also increasing research showing that foamites (inert objects) are capable of transmitting the virus. One study has not ruled out kissing as the means of transmission of HPV induced oral cancers.
It was also stated that cervical cancer occurs in a woman's 60's. This is not true. The peak incidence of CC is in between 34 to 54. However larger numbers of younger women in their 20' and 30's are now getting CC. And it's not just cervical cancer. HPV also causes vaginal, vulvar, anal, lung, head/neck and oral cancers. The more research being done the more cancers are being linked to this virus and it has moved past the "sex" arena.
It was also mentioned that women get CC without HPV, true, about 0.3%. 99.7% of cervical cancers ARE caused by HPV. As for the comment that Gardasil is to prevent HPV and not cervical cancer is a moot point. If HPV causes 99.7% of cervical cancers and Gardasil can help prevent against the strains that cause 70% of those, then yes it does prevent (indirectly) cervical cancer and every other cancer those two strains may cause.
I haven't seen any "scare tactics" utilized regarding the vaccine and would be interested to know where they can be found. Just as dangerous as potential side effects can be with any vaccination, what is just as dangerous in my opinion, is the dissemination of erroneous non-fact based information spread for the purpose of alarming people. Many of the comments above do just that. CC is STILL the second leading cause of death worldwide among women.
Someone questioned me about Merck continuing testing on the vaccine and that they're not sure that's true. Why don't you do some research and find out the true information. Merck has all of these reports available and all you have to do is contact them. You can look at the statistics, when these studies were performed and where and a host of other information. Then make your decisions, but not based on what someone thinks is true. You have to know it to be true, or not. Becoming educated and your own best advocate is my primary purpose regarding HPV. Sometimes it means taking the time to research these things ourselves since many physicians are ill equiped to provide accurate information either.
Whoever said HPV is preventable in other ways simply does not have the facts, yet is presenting this as such in her post. If she is referring to celibacy, men asymptomatically transmit HPV to women, this is how we get it. There is no test for men and so how do you determine if you celibate daughters future husband has HPV or not? You can't. And given the fact that 80% of sexually active adults will have acquired HPV it's more than likely he WILL have it and pass it along to your daughter even if she remained celibate. As for condoms, they can reduce but not prevent transmission of HPV. The most appauling comment above is "many women who get cervical cancer do not have HPV" These "many women" only equate to, as mentioned earlier, 0.3%. This is misleading without providing the true and accurate facts.
And while CC may not be an epidemic in this country it is not only an epidemic but the #1 cause of death in many under developed countries throughout the world. In the US, new cases of dysplasia/cancer occur at rate of approximately 300,000 a year. That is more than the number of lung cancers diagnosed annually in this country.
I understand peoples upsetment, especially as a parent of a young daughter myself. However, having dealt with the ravages of HPV and what it can do to a person it is all about weighing the risks after becoming informed. I just completed radiation therapy, brachtherapy (two days ago) which is radiation seed implants and have another course of chemo to go. I certainly would not want my daughter to experience any of THIS!
August 19, 2009 - 1:10pmThis Comment
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