Home
Newsletter
Events
Blogs
Reports
Graphics
RSS
About Us
Support
Write for Us
Media Info
Advertising Info
Mandatory vaccinations

HPV Vaccine Researcher Criticizes Drug Marketing as "Public Health Experiment"

Wednesday, January 09, 2008 by: David Gutierrez, staff writer
Tags: mandatory vaccinations, vaccines, public health


Most Viewed Articles
https://www.naturalnews.com/022478_mandatory_vaccinations_vaccines.html
Delicious
diaspora
Print
Email
Share

(NewsTarget) A researcher who has spent 20 years studying human papillomavirus (HPV) and did the bulk of the work that was used to develop a vaccine for several strains of the virus has warned that mandating the vaccine for girls under the age of 18 may actually backfire, causing cervical cancer rates to go up.

Twenty-six states are considering some form of mandatory HPV vaccination for school-age girls.

Diane M. Harper, director of Dartmouth Medical School's Gynecologic Cancer Prevention Research Group at the Norris Cotton Cancer Center in New Hampshire, warned that there have been no tests of the vaccine's effectiveness on girls under the age of 15. The drug may not be effective on younger girls, and it may have unforeseen side effects or interactions with other vaccines given at that age. Nonetheless, the Centers for Disease Control's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has recommended it for ages 9-26.

"Giving it to 11-year-olds is a great big public health experiment," Harper said. "To mandate now is simply to Merck's benefit, and only to Merck's benefit."

The HPV vaccine produced by Merck protects against two strains of the virus that have been identified as responsible for 70 percent of cervical cancer cases. But with the way the drug is being marketed, Harper is concerned that vaccinated women may decide that they are immune, and forego their yearly Pap smear testing.

Harper also warned that the vaccine is ineffective if given to someone who is already infected -- and because HPV is spread by skin-to-skin contact, a person does not have to be sexually active to contract it. For this reason, Harper suggests giving the vaccine only to those who test negative for the targeted HPV strains.

The HPV test is conducted by vaginal swab, which Harper says is inappropriate for children.

Finally, Harper warned that not enough research has been done to know how long the vaccine lasts, or at what age a booster may be needed. This means that even if the vaccine is effective in young girls, it may have worn off by the age at which they are most susceptible to cervical cancer.

"The push for mandatory vaccination is based on marketing, not science," added Mike Adams, author of numerous articles that oppose mandatory vaccination policies. "It's nothing but a clever Big Pharma scheme to sell more drugs to yet more people who don't need them."

Receive Our Free Email Newsletter

Get independent news alerts on natural cures, food lab tests, cannabis medicine, science, robotics, drones, privacy and more.


comments powered by Disqus



Natural News Wire (Sponsored Content)

Science.News
Science News & Studies
Medicine.News
Medicine News and Information
Food.News
Food News & Studies
Health.News
Health News & Studies
Herbs.News
Herbs News & Information
Pollution.News
Pollution News & Studies
Cancer.News
Cancer News & Studies
Climate.News
Climate News & Studies
Survival.News
Survival News & Information
Gear.News
Gear News & Information
Glitch.News
News covering technology, stocks, hackers, and more