Word: hpv
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...First, some history. The new vaccine, known as Gardasil, was approved earlier this month by the Food and Drug Administration, as the first ever designed to prevent cancer; it works by guarding against the human papillomavirus (HPV), which is thought to cause about three of every four cases of cervical cancer, the second most common cancer among women, and the third most deadly around the world. It kills close to 4000 women each year in the U.S. alone...
...Public health experts say that vaccines generally work best when everyone gets them: the laws of "herd immunity" dictate that the more people are protected against a particular virus, the more likely it is to eventually disappear altogether. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection; the Centers for Disease Control estimates that 20 million Americans carry it. By vaccinating children before they are sexually active, there is a hope of dramatically reducing the prevalence of at least some strains for the next generation...
...Scientist in Britain quoted the Family Research Council's Bridget Maher warning that "giving the HPV vaccine to young women could be potentially harmful, because they may see it as a licence to engage in premarital sex." Others warned of promoting false confidence, since the vaccine does not protect against all strains of HPV or the many other sexually transmitted diseases. Reginald Finger, a former medical advisor to Focus on the Family who sits on the CDC advisory committee, told The Hill that "if people begin to market the vaccine or tout the vaccine that this makes adolescent sex safer...
...with physicians, consumer groups and in this case faith-based organizations, to talk about what the disease looks like, what the vaccine does; it was part of a broad communications strategy." Merck also launched an ad campaign, "Tell Someone," that aims to teach viewers about the prevalence of HPV and its link to cervical cancer...
...impressed with Merck's handling of their questions. Its representatives, he said, "expressed sympathy with our concern that this not be distributed with an accompanying message that this makes it safe to have sex. They acknowledged the limits of the vaccine, that it does not target all strains of HPV, or any other sexually transmitted diseases." During public hearings on the vaccine held by the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in February, the Family Research Council representative applauded the vaccine, hoped that health care professionals would enforce the message that the only sure protection from sexually transmitted...