Gardasil Vaccine for cervical cancer prevention in adolescents, new vaccine for HPV virus information

The federal government approved Gardasil vaccine in June, 2006 and a government advisory panel has recommended that all girls get the shots at 11 and 12, before they are likely to be sexually active.

Gardasil vaccine side effects, danger
Gardasil vaccine thus far has been shown to have no serious side effects, however long term safety is not available.

Gardasil Vaccine mandatory in Texas
March  2007-  In the wake of surprisingly widespread and vocal public opposition to Texas Gov. Rick Perry's order that all girls who attend school in his state must receive the new vaccination for HPV when they enter the sixth grade - a series of three shots that can cost a total of $360 or more and have, according to some critics, unknown health and medical impacts - the Texas House voted 119-21 on March 13 to support a bill by a Republican legislator that says the vaccine cannot be a condition for school entry. The corrective legislation will go next to the Texas Senate, which is expected to pass it, and then to the governor, who may veto it. The nationwide momentum on the part of conventional physicians, drug industry lobbyists, and politicians to mandate the vaccine, called Gardasil and manufactured by Merck, for girls ages 10-12 has not slowed, however.

February 2007 - Bypassing the Legislature, Republican Gov. Rick Perry signed an order making Texas the first state to require that schoolgirls get injected by Gardasil vaccine which apparently may help against some viruses that transmit the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer. By issuing an executive order, Gov. Rick Perry prevents opposition in the Legislature. Beginning in September 2008, girls entering the sixth grade — meaning, generally, girls ages 11 and 12 — will have to get Gardasil vaccine from Merck & Co.'s against strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV. Merck is bankrolling efforts to pass state laws across the country mandating Gardasil for girls as young as 11 or 12. It doubled its lobbying budget in Texas and has funneled money through Women in Government, an advocacy group made up of female state legislators around the country. Gov. Rick Perry  has several ties to Merck and Women in Government. One of the drug company's three lobbyists in Texas is Mike Toomey, Perry's former chief of staff. His current chief of staff's mother-in-law, Texas Republican state Rep. Dianne White Delisi, is a state director for Women in Government. Perry also received $6,000 from Merck's political action committee during his re-election campaign. Texas allows parents to opt out of inoculations by filing an affidavit objecting to the vaccine on religious or philosophical reasons. Even with such provisions, however, conservative groups say such requirements interfere with parents' rights to make medical decisions for their children. erck, Inc could generate billions in sales if Gardasil — at $360 for the three-shot regimen — were made mandatory across the country. Most insurance companies now cover Gardasil vaccine.
   Comments: In February 2007, FDA sent a warning, "Reports of potentially life-threatening twisting of the intestines in infants vaccinated against a virus that is the leading cause of early childhood diarrhea. The condition, called intussusception, is the same that led to the withdrawal of the first rotavirus vaccine eight years ago. The Food and Drug Administration said it was unknown whether the recently approved vaccine, called RotaTeq, caused the 28 new cases. The condition also can occur spontaneously."
   Unless a vaccine cures or prevents a very common and very serious illness, it is better to wait a couple of years after it is marketed to the public to determine if it has any serious side effects. In the case of Gardasil, this is a good option for the time being until more Gardasil research is avaiiable and more reports of  vaccination side effects are published.

Gardasil vaccine questions
Do you think all girls should get the Guardasil vaccine. My daughter refuses to get the shot.
   Since Gardasil vaccine does not prevent all cases of cervical cancer, and since cervical cancer is often not life threatening and can be treated well when caught early by PAP tests, and since we don't know the long term side effects of Gardasil vaccine shot for HPV virus, I don't see why it would not be unreasonable to wait a couple of more years to find out how effective the vaccine is, and whether Gardasil side effects may be discovered in the future that we are not aware of yet. Plus, the cost of Gardasil vaccine is very high.

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