NYT Health: Remark on HPV Vaccine Could Ripple for Years

[HuckleB]

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/health/20hpv.html

"During a debate last week for Republican presidential candidates and in interviews after it, Representative Michele Bachmann called the vaccine to prevent cervical cancer “dangerous.” Medical experts fired back quickly. Her statements were false, they said, emphasizing that the vaccine is safe and can save lives. Mrs. Bachmann was soon on the defensive, acknowledging that she was not a doctor or a scientist.

But the harm to public health may have already been done. When politicians or celebrities raise alarms about vaccines, even false alarms, vaccination rates drop.

“These things always set you back about three years, which is exactly what we can’t afford,” said Dr. Rodney E. Willoughby, a professor of pediatrics at the Medical College of Wisconsin and a member of the committee on infectious diseases of the American Academy of Pediatrics. The academy favors use of the vaccine, as do other medical groups and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The vaccine, recommended by the medical groups for 11- and 12-year-olds, protects against the human papillomavirus, or HPV, a sexually transmitted infection that can cause cancer. Use of the vaccine was disturbingly low even before the Bachmann flap, health officials say. That is partly because of the recent climate of fear about vaccines in general, and partly because some parents feel that giving the vaccine somehow implies that they are accepting or even condoning the idea that their young daughters will soon start having sex.

..."


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It's far to easy to sow fear, and the anti-vaxers have learned to sow fear with the best of them. Alas, this fear can lead to disease and death.

:mad: :crazy: :grr: :banghead:

[applegrove]

1. Like many GOPers and Tea Baggers, Michelle Bachmann is an actual danger to Americans' health.

[ingac70]

2. If a bunch of Theocrats wanna kill off their future....

by not preventing cervical cancer in their girls, I say let evolution take its course.

[HuckleB]

5. As it will...

... but, well, ...

[TheWraith]

17. Their CHILDREN didn't do anything to deserve that shit.

Being a right winger isn't genetic. Their children, who have absolutely NO choice about what their parents believe or do, don't deserve horrible pain, sickness, or death, just because their parents are assholes.

Even worse, this kind of urban legend bullshit propagates and affects people who are not just right-wing fundies. There ARE people out there who are going to hear Bachmann's comment and take it seriously, because they can't imagine that a Presidential candidate would say such a thing without evidence. Look at the number of people who still believe there's a connection between vaccines and autism, even though there is NONE.

[glowing]

3. Am I wrong in thinking that it was pushed onto women really fast?

I'm married and my dr was trying to push this vaccine onto me. I don't have HPV nor does my husband. And it can cause infertility. The last thing I need. I already have issues with my natural cycle and have yet to naturally conceive... She knew this. Why would she in the same breath suggest something that could cause further problems? I changes drs afterthat visit.

[HuckleB]

4. The vaccine was well tested, and has been shown to be safe and effective in follow-up research

So, there was no need to change MDs.

[glowing]

7. Yes, there was. I don't need to feel pressured into taking a vaccine

at 30 yrs old and a 10yr marriage. I do pay attention to all the things that have a chance of causing infertility.

Its my comfort level with someone I'm trusting to help me with my health. I felt she was working for the pharmaceutical company. I don't think you would stay with a Dr. that you felt uncomfortable with.. who also happens to be working in areas that are very private with my body.

[HuckleB]

10. Well, I wouldn't be comfortable with a doctor who failed to call me on my misconceptions.

And that appears to be the kind of doctor you prefer.

[glowing]

13. No, handing me a pamphlet, 1 explanation is quite enough.

I don't feel any Dr should go beyond that point. I also changed another Dr. because when he was doing my breast exam, he looked away. Now, I understand that was what he was comfortable doing with his female patients.. but it seems to me that one's eyes along with hands would be more normal. It was like he was embarrassed to do his job. It was wildly uncomfortable to have this Dr act in such an odd manner. I live in an area that has lot's of choices. Its easy enough for me find someone else within my HMO group listing than go to a Dr that makes me uncomfortable.

The one really great Ob-Gyn I found got married and moved to Boston. She was amazing. Super smart, great "bed-side" presence, and her staff seemed really in good spirits to be working there as well.

I think people get really nutty when discussing vaccinations.. Its like all in, or all out whacko... It shouldn't have to be that way to discuss health. I'm all of a sudden an anti-vaccine nut because I shared an experience about myself. I've had all the vaccines I was supposed to get thru my child hood.. I even had a tetnes shot recently. My step-son has all of his shots and I've taken him to get many of them. Its like this weird thing happens around the discussion of shots, safety, Drs, mandatory, FDA, etc. I suppose if the FDA was more trustworthy and we don't have history in our past of this country say injecting syphilis into people on purpose, perhaps the discussions would be more rational and sane and we would be talking about health and administration of health, rather than try and label people into little boxes.

[HuckleB]

15. Well, I'm not a big fan of anecdotes on the Internet.

For very obvious reasons.

[glowing]

19. Its a discussion board, not a scientific journal.

[Tesha]

6. Cause infertility? Have you got a citation for that claim? (NT)

[glowing]

8. It was on the pamphlet she handed me to look over.

I also didn't understand why I would need this? 30yrs old, with the same person for 10 yrs, 7 yrs married. Neither of us have HPV.. and I'm trying to get pregnant. It was out of line to continue trying to push me like a sale agent. Mentioning it once was enough.. Actually, the nurse handed it to me first. Then after waiting in the cold room naked, I was asked repeatedly to have this shot. I had time to read it. If I become divorced and begin dating again, then perhaps I would consider the shot... It was inappropriate. I changed Drs and now I'm happy.

[HuckleB]

11. Your anecdote seems to be growing wings.

[glowing]

12. Nope, I'm not anti-vaccine. My step-son has had all of his shots and I've

taken him to get them. I'm not against anyone taking any sort of vaccine that they feel comfortable with. I didn't appreciate the manner in which the Dr and the facility seemed to push this vaccine. Perhaps they were getting kick backs. I know she said, you have insurance, normally this is very expensive, but for you its free.

Each to their own. I've never google searched the vaccine. I don't believe its something that I need. AND I'm overly paranoid about anything that says there's a chance of infertility... Shoot, I stopped taking birth control as well because there was a chance. The % is very, very low... But when "baby" is in the back of my brain, I've become crazy about any of these things. Probably overly so. Take whatever floats your boat.

[HuckleB]

14. Then why make the claims you're make against a safe and effective vaccine?

[glowing]

18. My original comment was, did anyone feel it was rushed and pushed onto women in a fast manner?

If no one has that opinion, then I'm in a minority opinion and it is based on my negative experience with my former Dr... along with the states that seemed to want to mandate the vaccine for younger girls. AND I do believe that had to do more with kickbacks by the drug companies for politicians than the feel good claims for protection... Which then makes me feel its all the more shady. Yes, I have a general distrust of Govt and agencies that are suppose to operate for the better of our citizens. I still don't really see the "good" of Homeland Security. FEMA is the only agency within that spectrum that seems to be a good entity, but even that section has been subjugated to cronyism "heck of a job" types of issues.

[LadyHawkAZ]

20. Someone seems to have given you misinformation

although I can understand that you're trying to get pregnant and don't want to take risks, there seems to be zero cases of infertility from the shot.

I had to look this up earlier for something else, so it was already right there handy:
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/vaccines/hpv/gardasil.html

Serious adverse event reports

Any VAERS report that indicated hospitalization, permanent disability, life-threatening illness, congenital anomaly or death is classified as serious. As with all VAERS reports, serious events may or may not have been caused by the vaccine.
Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS)

Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) has been reported after vaccination with Gardasil® . GBS is a rare neurologic disorder that causes muscle weakness. It occurs in 1-2 out of every 100,000 people in their teens. A number of infections have been associated with GBS. There has been no indication that Gardasil® increases the rate of GBS above the rate expected in the general population, whether or not they were vaccinated.
Blood Clots

There have been some reports of blood clots in females after receiving Gardasil®. These clots have occurred in the heart, lungs, and legs. Most of these people had a risk of getting blood clots, such as taking oral contraceptives (the birth control pill), smoking, obesity, and other risk factors.
Deaths

As of June 22, 2011 there have been a total 68 VAERS reports of death among those who have received Gardasil® . There were 54 reports among females, 3 were among males, and 11 were reports of unknown gender. Thirty two of the total death reports have been confirmed and 36 remain unconfirmed due to no identifiable patient information in the report such as a name and contact information to confirm the report. A death report is confirmed (verified) after a medical doctor reviews the report and any associated records. In the 32 reports confirmed, there was no unusual pattern or clustering to the deaths that would suggest that they were caused by the vaccine and some reports indicated a cause of death unrelated to vaccination.

Here's the info-for-dummies sheet:
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/downloads/vis-hpv-gardasil.pdf

[AngkorWot]

9. Yes.

You're Michelle Bachmann-tier wrong.

[HuckleB]

16. +1