By: Cindel Pena
24 September 2010
Whether it is your school nurse, doctor or word of mouth from a friend, women are rushing to the doctor in the hundreds of thousands to receive the HPV vaccination. Little do these women know that the vaccine they are about to put into their bodies is still in Phase 4 testing, contains known carcinogenic ingredients, and has many hidden dangers. As the pharmaceutical industry brings in billions of dollars and tries to avoid the negative publicity surrounding Gardasil (the human papillomavirus vaccine), women are being put at risk. It is important for all women to know what the human papillomavirus (HPV) is, what the virus does, what the vaccine is known to do and what the side effects and dangers are of the vaccine in order to make informed and potentially life-saving choices.
The human papillomavirus can be found in over 100 strains and is a viral infection which can cause varied symptoms, ranging from warts to infections of the body’s mucus membranes. The virus we will explore is the type that causes an infection of the body’s mucus membranes. This virus often has no visible symptoms but creates small, painless lesions throughout the interior genital areas. These lesions create abnormal cells which are found to be the most common type of cell to place an individual at risk for cancer. However, as the U.S. National Cancer Institute reported about the link between the human papillomavirus and cancer, “direct causation has not been proven. In a controlled study of age-matched women, 67% of those with cervical cancer and 43% of those without were found to be HPV-positive” (1). So, although an individual may have HPV, there is no degree of certainty that cervical cancer will result. It is vital to understand that although one can be vaccinated for HPV, the need for a routine annual pap smear is just as strong as it is for those without the vaccine, and early detection of any abnormal cells will remain the key to staying cancer free.
The diagnosis of HPV is very easy, and HPV is treatable once detected. It’s important that sexually active females have a pap smear annually to help identify HPV (and other viruses) in their systems as soon as possible so that treatment for HPV can be preformed with little or no adverse reactions. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention produced a report to congress titled “Prevention of Genital Human Papillomavirus Infection” in which it was stated that “regular cervical cancer screening for all sexually active women and treatment for precancerous lesions remains the key strategy to prevent cervical cancer” (5). It is important to realize that although one can be vaccinated, routine testing for HPV should continue regardless as HPV is not the only cause of cervical cancer.
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