The FDA recently announced the approval of a second HPV vaccine for the U.S. market. Cervarix, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, is the sole competitor to rival vaccine Gardasil, produced by Merck & Co. The vaccines differ in the strains of HPV they guard against, but both will fight the two most common strains that cause 70% of cervical cancers. At the same time, however, the FDA also granted approval for Merck’s Gardasil to be used in preventing genital warts (not genital cancer) in boys and men ages 9 through 26. But, do our children need yet another vaccine? You be the judge. Both vaccines are expected to net their respective companies over $1 billion per year in the coming years. [via ABC News]
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Tags: Cancer, Cervarix, cervical, FDA, gardasil, genital, GlaxoSmithKline, GSK, hpv, Merck, warts
Dr. Steven Chang, the author of DailyDose, is a staff physician with Kosmix RightHealth. Dr. Chang practices Family Medicine at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where his medical interests include both pediatric and geriatric care, public health, gay and lesbian health, and sleep medicine. Dr. Chang trained at the Stanford University affiliated O'Connor Hospital, and was a research fellow at the National Institute of Health. He holds an M.D. from McGill University and a BA in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University.
October 19th, 2009 at 6:42 am
Only foolish people would submit their children to these two vaccines. Gardasil has already shown itrs detriment to the nervous system and in several cases have resulted in death. The new vaccine has not proven itself to have any improvements.
This is what you get when Big Pharma influences the FDA.
Keep your children far away from these two vaccines unless you want to do them harm.
October 19th, 2009 at 8:35 am
Why would a parent submit their children to either of these two vaccines. Gardasil has already shown it has a detriment to the nervous system and in several cases have resulted in death. The new vaccine has not proven itself to have any improvements.
This is what you get when Big Pharm. companies runs the FDA.
Keep your children far away from either of these two vaccines, there is too many negatives to do harm
October 21st, 2009 at 7:09 pm
A British young woman was recently denied coming to the US, because she refused to get the HPV vaccine!
That reminds me that I , a Swedish physician, my 17 year old daughter and 15 year old son had to have PPD, chest X-ray, syphilis test and HIV TEST done, before getting visa into the US, when I moved here to marry my American husband in 1991! How humiliating to have syphilis and HIV tests done on my children.
The US authorities are trying to stop enemies that are already in this country! Sweden had very few HIV infected people.The U.S. had already an epidemic!
The U.S. do not demand HPV vaccination of young American women. Why demand it from a British woman?
I cannot tolerate stupidity.
Lisbeth Nordstrom-Lerner, M.D.