Gardasil Might Be Bad for Girls
By Loryn Wilson - Jul 10th, 2008 at 12:11 pmWhen Gardasil was first introduced as the HPV vaccine, I remember getting a call from my mother almost every other month, asking me if I had “gotten my shots.” I’m all for the introduction of vaccines, but there was something about Gardasil that made me hesitant to buy into the hype, and now I know why.
From CNN:
Gardasil has been the subject of 7,802 “adverse event” reports from the time the Food and Drug Administration approved its use two years ago, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Girls and women have blamed the vaccine for causing ailments from nausea to paralysis — even death.
Two girls allege in court that the vaccine made them sick.
One — Jesalee Parsons of Broken Bow, Oklahoma — got the shot at age 13.
Jesalee’s lawyer, Michael McLaren, said she got the shot on February 27, 2007 and soon developed a fever and felt pain. The next day, he said, Jesalee felt pain in her chest and abdomen.
Her mother, Laura Parsons, said Jesalee spent weeks in the hospital and underwent two surgeries after developing pancreatitis. She says the federal government should have studied the drug more before approving its use.
Once the FDA approved Gardasil, questions were raised about whether or not the vaccine should be required for young girls. On the surface it seemed like a good idea because it would protect them from a very common STI and reduce the risk of cervical cancer. But seeing the potential risks and side effects, perhaps folks were a bit hasty in their calls to get as many folks vaccinated as possible.
It seems like the pharmaceutical company was so quick to push Gardasil out to the public as the HPV vaccine that they didn’t keep the well-being of young girls and women at heart. And then, instead of questioning the possible risks of Gardasil, many parents rushed their daughters to the doctor’s office in hopes of providing them with the vaccine. Shouldn’t there be more tried and true testing of a vaccine and its possible effects before we proclaim that it is a vital part of women’s health?
And I don’t know about you, but I’m particularly suspicious of any treatment regarding my reproductive system that involves a needle injection… it is unsettling in a Children of Men sort of way. But that’s a completely different blog post, I’m sure.
Bullshit, it’s bad science reporting. See Feministe and Denialism Blog.
July 10th, 2008 at 1:48 pmWhat’s amazing about this Gardasil problem is that it points to a general problem that we are having when expensive marketing campaigns and, I suspect, lobbyist are involved with drugs that can affect our health. The results can be fatal and steps need to be taken to avoid this later. I know, personally, because I have become so hyper sensitive to marketing, just the fact that Gardasil was always on the television I became totally skeptical of it.
July 10th, 2008 at 2:33 pm