HPV Vaccine - When Profits Come Before Safety
By Dana Gabriel http://newworldordermustbestopped.com/featuredarticle.html
Gardasil is a vaccine manufactured by Merck & Co., which targets the Human
Papillomavirus (HPV) and was approved by the FDA in June of 2006. It is
administrated in three doses over a six-month period at a cost of between
$360-400 per person, making it one of the most expensive vaccines of all
time. It has been recommended for girls and young women, and there has been
a push by some to make the vaccine mandatory in some states. This would
translate into even more profits. Merck recently reported a 63% rise in net
income for its third quarter. Total vaccine sales went from $555 million to
$1.2 billion, fueled mostly by Gardasil. The vaccine is not a cure for
cervical cancer, and many believe that its benefits have been greatly
exaggerated, leading to a false sense of security. There are some who
believe that the money spent on this expensive vaccine could have been
better spent on pap smears, which can detect pre-cancerous cells. The HPV
vaccine is being marketed as a cancer drug when it is essentially a vaccine
for a sexually transmitted disease. There is now a push towards mandating
every new vaccine that comes out on the market, and it is unclear how long
this particular vaccine's effectiveness will last. Many serious side effects
including deaths have been linked to the HPV vaccine over the last several
months. What is good for Big Pharma isn't necessarily good for our children.
HPV is a virus transmitted through sexual activity that can cause genital
warts and cervical cancer. There are more than 100 different types of HPV,
with 30 strains thought to be associated with cervical cancer. The new
vaccine only prevents infections of four strains of HPV, and it has been due
to more routine pap smears, that there has been a 70% decline in cervical
cancer in the U.S. over the last few decades. Those who do get the virus
don't automatically get cervical cancer with many infections clearing up.
Girls who live a healthy lifestyle have little risk of developing cancer
from HPV and cervical cancer most often develops in older women. It is those
with compromised immune systems, women who don't get regular pap smears,
those with multiple sexual partners, poor nutrition, and poor hygiene who
are most vulnerable. There are many who believe that the vaccine will lead
to more unprotected and underage sex and encourage promiscuity. Most trials
of the vaccine were on adults, and there is no idea on its long-term effects
on young girls. Some have accused Merck of assuming that because its tests
were shown to be safe in older girls, the same would go for the younger
ones. Diane M. Harper, a scientist, physician, professor, and director at
the Gynecologic Cancer Prevention Research Group at Dartmouth Medical School
said, “it's not been tested in little girls for efficacy. At 11, the girls
don't get cervical cancer- they won't know for 25 years if they will get
cervical cancer.” She went on to say, “Giving it to 11 year-olds is a great
big experiment.” The President of Judaical Watch said, “It looks as if an
unproven vaccine with dangerous side effects is being pushed as a miracle
drug.” Gardasil is based on fear-mongering and distortions, with many
adverse effects which threaten our children.
Some have criticized that it took too long to get the HPV vaccine approved
and on the market, and as a result lives were lost. In light of the fact
that there has been some 11 deaths and thousands of adverse reactions
reported, it appears as if more time and care should have be taken. In a
rush to get it out on the market, we are shown another example of putting
profits before safety. Almost immediately after the FDA approved the
vaccine, there was a mad dash by some legislators, no doubt influenced by
Merck lobbyists, to draft bills mandating vaccination programs in some
states. Thanks to Judaical Watch obtaining important data through a Freedom
of Information lawsuit, complications associated with the HPV vaccine were
brought to the public's attention. The FDA had refused to release any
information pertaining to adverse effects, even though some have died as a
result of heart complications and blood clots associated with the vaccine.
Some 25% of all complications reported were of serious nature and include
tingling, numbness, temporary paralysis of the muscles, seizures,
neurological conditions along with others. Some side effects published by
Merck include pain, fever, nausea, dizziness, vomiting, diarrhea, sore
throat, cough, stuffy nose, headaches, toothaches, itching, and swelling
after getting the shot. These aren't quite as serious as the ones that were
left out. There have been many warnings of the dangers of pregnant women
being vaccinated, and almost half who took the HPV vaccine while pregnant
experienced side effects, some as serious as spontaneous abortions and
malformed babies. Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said, “The FDA adverse
event reports on the HPV vaccine read like a catalog of horrors.” These
disturbing side effects will only increase as more and more girls are
vaccinated. In an effort to restore public confidence, both the FDA and
Merck are denying that any of the deaths and serious adverse effects are
linked to Gardasil. There must be a full investigation into the practices of
Merck, the FDA, and the whole pharmaceutical industry. This seems like a
case of Merck manipulating the medical profession, politicians, the media,
and parents in order to achieve more profits.
In early 2007, Texas Governor Rick Perry passed an executive order that
would have required girls 11-12 to take the HPV vaccine, completely
bypassing the legislature and ignoring opposition from parental rights
organizations. It later came out that there were connections between Merck
and some in Perry's office. The Texas legislator blocked Perry's initiative,
with the House voting 135-2 and making their decision veto-proof. Even
before Gardasil was approved, there was an intense lobbying effort to get
states to mandate the vaccine. CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay
Gupta was pimping out the vaccine by doing on-air promotions for Gardasil
eight months before it was approved. It came out that the
organization,“Women in Government,” who have been actively promoting the
vaccine, received financial contributions from Merck. It is also interesting
to note that two of Merck's former biologists were on the FDA panel that
approved Gardasil. Merck's aggressive lobbying efforts and the reports of
thousands of adverse reactions and some deaths associated with the vaccine
created a strong backlash, forcing them to abandon their goal of getting it
mandated in every state. Any forced drugging or inoculations goes well
beyond the state's role. It is a threat to parental authority and interferes
with their rights to make medical decisions for their children.
Currently, 38 states have either passed or are considering legislation to
mandate, fund, or educate the public on the HPV vaccine. Merck's affiliate
Merck Frosst Canada has been busy lobbying the federal and provincial
governments in that country. In July, Prime Minister Stephen Harper's
Conservative Government approved the HPV vaccine and later announced $300
million to be distributed among the provinces for vaccination programs. In
the UK, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has recommended
that all 12 and 13 year-old girls be given the HPV vaccine, and also
recommenced a catchup program. Germany, France, Italy, Austria, Luxembourg,
Norway along with other countries have also recommended that Gardasil be
given to girls and young women. Despite all the controversy associated with
its new vaccine, Merck is poised to make a killing in profits, pardon the
bad pun.
It now appears as if the FDA's role is to further facilitate and ensure
profits for Big Pharma, and there is a goal of getting new drugs on the
market more quickly and cheaply. This has resulted in less testing for
safety and effectiveness. Do we really want to trust our children's health
and lives with Merck? These are the same guys who have already displayed
their willingness to put profits before safety. In the case of Vioxx, close
to 30.000 people died in the name of greed and neglect. Merck has been
accused of distorting negative disclosures, omitting information, and
cherry-picking from their own research. Many are concerned, and rightfully
so, that their latest cash cow Gardasil hasn't been properly tested, and
there is a misconception by some that the the HPV vaccine will provide full
protection against cervical cancer. Although it was originally marketed for
girls, some are now advising that school-aged boys get the new vaccine as
well, perhaps another attempt to increase profits. No one should be lab rats
or guinea pigs. How many people are going to be sacrificed in the name of
profits for Big Pharma before we all get mad and do something about it?
There is a growing distrust among more and more parents towards vaccines and
a genuine concern that their children are already overloaded with them.
Parents must be better educated in order to make informed decisions, but
ultimately the HPV vaccine is a matter of parental and individual choice,
and in no way should it be mandated by the government.
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