“Dear Pharmacist,
My friend and I are arguing about giving our daughters the Gardasil vaccine to prevent cervical cancer that you is transmitted from unprotected sex. I say “no” and she says “yes.” Settle this: Would you give it to your daughter?”
–F.E., Gainesville, Florida
ANSWER: No, I wouldn’t. Gardasil – released in 2006 – is a series of three vaccinations aimed at women, ages 9-26, to reduce the risk of developing cervical cancer later in life from HPV (human papilloma virus) transmitted during sex.
I’ve noticed a massive (and pushy) campaign to mandate injections for little girls in middle school, ages 11-12. These drugs were not tested well in little girls, hence, our daughters will become the long-term study group in this human experiment! Even though millions of women have done fine with Gardasil, there are some reports of hospitalizations from adverse drug reactions and a few deaths being investigated. According to the makers:
“Gardasil may not fully protect everyone and does not prevent all types of cervical cancer...”
Let me tell you exactly what this means. Gardasil reduces incidence of infection from HPV types 6, 11, 16 and 18. Type 6 and 11 only cause genital warts (annoying, but not fatal); whereas, the 16 and 18 strains of HPV are the strains linked to precancerous cervical cells. In my opinion, if Gardasil addresses only four strains of HPV, and there are dozens of other strains, why shoot the medical dart?
Merck will tell you to shoot it because those who develop cancer are usually infected with HPV. But not everyone with HPV develops cancer; it’s an unusual event from a common infection. While Gardasil may be 100 percent effective at eradicating the majority of cervical cancers from type 16 and 18 strains, do the benefits outweigh the risks? People with allergies to yeast could experience even more side effects. Gardasil contains “histadine” which turns into “histamine” and while rare, it could cause allergic reactions or fainting in sensitive people. This has happened.
Gardasil also contains aluminum – a metal that may be involved in disorders like ALS (Lou Gehrig’s), Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. If that’s true, what will the fallout be in years to come if we inject our daughters now?
HPV could go undetected for years, and vaccinating a woman who’s already infected could fuel the development of cervical dysplasia and cancer. The vaccination doesn’t guarantee that you won’t get cancer either because other factors come into play. For example, smoking (or having sex with a smoker) increases your risk. So does a deficiency in folic acid or vitamin C. Eating poorly will increase your risk of developing any cancer. A healthy immune system will help you deal more efficiently with any virus or bacteria that you encounter. According to www.cervicaldysplasia.com, “women with normal immune system function can be cured of cervical dysplasia.” It’s important to get routine pap smears because early detection saves lives.
