Merck To Halt Lobbying For Vaccine

theodp writes "Reacting to a furor from some parents, advocacy groups, and public health experts, Merck said yesterday that it would stop lobbying state legislatures to require the use of its new cervical cancer vaccine Gardasil, which acts against strains of the sexually-transmitted human papilloma virus. The $400, 3-shot regimen was approved by the FDA in June. Later that month, a federal advisory panel recommended that females 11-26 years old be vaccinated. The governor of Texas has already signed an executive order making its use mandatory for schoolgirls."

Comments

Wrong Info on Blog

[WebHostingGuy]

And the information on the 10 things you might know is wrong.

1. The blog states the vaccine only decreases the chance--that's wrong. If you have not been previously infected with HPV then there is a 100% effective rate.

2. In 2007 the incidence of cervical cancer went up.

3. Yep, it is the most expensive, however it is the ONLY vaccine which prevent cancer and DEATH. (And yeah it made $70 million, chump change for a company which made $22 billion in 2006).

4. Wrong. Gardasil is already a part of this program. Having a mandate will not change liability at all.

5. There is 5 year data now with another 3 1/2 year data prior to the launch of the drug; that's 8 1/2 years of data now.

6. This is true, however, in the current data there has been no wane in the immunity; and vaccines typically never need booster shots due to the way vaccines work.

7. Yes, neither was any other drug on the market.

8. Pure speculation. There has been no proof that aluminum is harmful. Gardasil was tested with Hepatitis B because it has the same aluminum compound and has been on the market for 19 years.

9. There are currently studies going on with boys and safety data is already available for boys in the label. Also, the EU and Australia are already using on boys.

10. It's ironic that the blog ends with making an uninformed decision when all the facts are wrong on the site.

Yeah, this seems like a shrill for Gardasil but I have personal knowledge of this drug and sometimes setting the facts straight on a drug which is saving lives need some truth out there among the free range blogs which aren't providing accurate information.

Re:Not the government's responsibility

[Fwonkas]

More to the point, I'm not sure people realize just how easy it is to contract HPV. Not only that, but there really aren't any tests for males. It usually shows no symptoms, though I think that certain types result in genital warts.

Sex isn't even necessary to contract it. A large chunk of the adult population has it and doesn't know it. I could have it, for all I know. But it causes cervical cancer.

Re:Gimme a break

[TubeSteak]

Without any law, concerned parents already have the means to give this shot to their daughters (just ask your doctor). So why make it a legal issue?

Merck (and the various Federal Agencies that deal with health issues) hve done studies which conclude that if you don't require it by law, you won't get high enough vaccination rates. That conclusion is old news in public health circles and applies to all the *mandatory vaccinnes

You can't really eradicate a disease through a program of voluntary vaccination.

*As an aside, you may have heard that this vaccine will be voluntary, blah blah blah. That's because the Federal Law has an exemption such that your child does not have to be vaccinated against anything to attend school, as long as you claim it goes against your religious (defined as moral or ethical) beliefs. Legally, you don't have to go into any further details to get an exemption. Just put it in writing & send it to the school.