HPV Vaccine

[Tiffer]

This is an interesting discussion!!!

Another part of the discussion that I thought would have been mentioned by now has to do with the idea that a vaccine preventing a sexually transmitted disease could, in some way, be interpreted to mean givng young girls permission to be sexually active. This was another point I read when I saw the initial info about the vaccine. Anyone have any thoughts on that angle? Personally, I'd hope that my own parenting and our family discussions, etc. would stick with my daughters when they were making those decisions. I think some education about what this vaccine will and will not do is certainly in order - for example, even if a girl were vaccinated, she'd need to insist on condom use to protect against other STDs and HIV, for example, not to mention pregnancy!!!

Define "active". In other words. the vaccine is recommended for women up to age 26. You don't have to be promiscuous to get HPV. You can get it from one or two partners.

My guess is by the time most women reach age 26, they are no longer virgins.

Of course a woman will still need a condom, just as she would from birth control pills. But this is not a birth control. So I don't look at it as encouraging sexual relations, as much as some would think the pill does.

 

[katerkat]

OK, correct me if I'm wrong - this vaccine only protects against the four strains that are most likely to cause cervical cancer. (Which don't get me wrong - good idea!) But there are more than 100 different types of HPV, 30 of which are STDs - so obviously someone can still get *a* HPV after getting the vaccine.

Source:
CDC - http://www.cdc.gov/std/HPV/STDFact-HPV.htm
Merck - http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=22620

 

[Marla Hellwig]

my 15 yr got her first round yesterday. I had researched it, talked it over with her and with her doctor.

She gets her second shot week after Thanksgiving and the last one the end of Jan.

Personally I feel it is the right decision, along with the decision that she got the chicken pox vaccine when it came out, can't count how many times she was exposed, and not getting it.

I was warned by doctor's office that insurance may or may not pay for it. I said it didn't matter - my daughter's future health is more important than an insurance company paying for a series of shots.

 

[DVCLiz]

But I think they need to be protected in the cases of rape or other sexual abuse.

Oh, absolutely. I agree with you.

 

[DVCLiz]

I couldn't have said it better. In fact I tried, and then realized that you had said everything I wanted to, more clearly. (bolding is mine).

Well, yes, but...when I spoke about my own parenting being the major influence, I didn't mean to imply that I thought my daughters would be celibate until marriage. I meant that our on-going discussions through their pre-teen and teen years, about sex and birth control and making good choices, would come into play more than a series of shots that could sound, to some, like a free pass to have sex. That's not my opinion, by the way, but I did read an article about this vaccine in which someone said they worried it would be seen as permission to have sex.

I hope my daughters will have everything they need to make good decisions - an open-minded mother who has educated them and respected their feelings, a medical community that can provide safe and legal birth control to prevent unwanted prenancy AND sexually transmitted diseases, and new research that gives them another layer of safety from fatal medical conditions like cervical cancer.

 

[DVCLiz]

Define "active". In other words. the vaccine is recommended for women up to age 26. You don't have to be promiscuous to get HPV. You can get it from one or two partners.

My guess is by the time most women reach age 26, they are no longer virgins.

Of course a woman will still need a condom, just as she would from birth control pills. But this is not a birth control. So I don't look at it as encouraging sexual relations, as much as some would think the pill does.

Oh, I'd define "active" as the first time a girl had any kind of sex. I know some middle schoolers have decided that some things "aren't really sex", but they sure are by my definition!!!!

 

[mickeyfan2]

"Instead, said Robert Rose, an immunologist working with Bonnez, the Rochester team tried grafting bits of foreskin collected from hospital circumcisions and infected with genital wart extract into mice lacking the ability to reject foreign tissue. The resulting cysts contained enough human virus to work with.

Ultimately, the two vaccines were the fruit of the labors of dozens of scientists. A patent battle involving the National Cancer Institute, the University of Rochester, Georgetown University and Queensland University in Australia was resolved after 13 years when Merck and Glaxo signed royalty agreements with all four."

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/08/30/healthscience/snvaccine.php#

They are not injecting the foreskins, it is used to infect the mice to create enough of the virus to work with.

 

[mickeyfan2]

Thanks for clearing that up. I just hate when people post things like that without having read the research (and understood it.)

Just remember that there are militant foreskin people so they have another interest in putting out this misinformation. Some even posted on this thread.

 

[va32h]

As someone who has HPV and has had cervical cancer, I fully understand the importance of preventing this disease.

But I am not having dd10 vaccinated at this time. My insurance does not cover it, so it would cost $200 (per injection, according to my ped.) Call me naive, but I'd like to think I have a few years at least before my daughter is sexually active.

I will re-visit the issue at a later time.

Yes, she could be molested or raped, but statistically, that probability is low.

I cannot go through life considering every bad thing that could happen, but need to focus on what is most likely to happen. At this moment, getting her a flu shot would do more immediate good than the HPV vaccine.

 

[Tiffer]

Oh, I'd define "active" as the first time a girl had any kind of sex. I know some middle schoolers have decided that some things "aren't really sex", but they sure are by my definition!!!!

I agree. SOme seem to think that only girls w/multiple partners get HPV.

 

[lil mermaid]

OK, correct me if I'm wrong - this vaccine only protects against the four strains that are most likely to cause cervical cancer. (Which don't get me wrong - good idea!) But there are more than 100 different types of HPV, 30 of which are STDs - so obviously someone can still get *a* HPV after getting the vaccine.

Source:
CDC - http://www.cdc.gov/std/HPV/STDFact-HPV.htm
Merck - http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=22620

This is a good point. It isn't a perfect vaccine, and the CDC states that about 30% of cancers and 10% of genital warts will not be prevented by the vaccine. That is why it will still be important for everyone who is over 18 (or under 18 and sexually active) to be screened annually (i.e., pap smears.)

 

[DVCLiz]

As someone who has HPV and has had cervical cancer, I fully understand the importance of preventing this disease.

But I am not having dd10 vaccinated at this time. My insurance does not cover it, so it would cost $200 (per injection, according to my ped.) Call me naive, but I'd like to think I have a few years at least before my daughter is sexually active.

I will re-visit the issue at a later time.

Yes, she could be molested or raped, but statistically, that probability is low.

I cannot go through life considering every bad thing that could happen, but need to focus on what is most likely to happen. At this moment, getting her a flu shot would do more immediate good than the HPV vaccine.

I think you're safe for a few years!!!!!

I do think whoever is setting the age parameters for this vaccine are probably trying to go low enough to catch most, if not all, girls well before they are sexually active. Obviously, in my case DD17 (who will be DD18 tomorrow!!!) didn't have the option of getting it earlier, and DD12, who will be DD13 in December, will get it WELL BEFORE I think she will be making those choices.

I'd like to think it will become standard at a younger age so that no girl is exposed to this virus, whether by sexual activity or rape or molestation, without the protection of this vaccine as soon as possible.

I do hope it will soon be covered under insurance - it would be a shame not to be able to take advantage of it for a girl who was a prime candidate because of the cost.

 

[Tinijocaro]

They are not injecting the foreskins, it is used to infect the mice to create enough of the virus to work with.

If a foreskin was used in the making of this vaccine, I am opposed to it. That's all I'll say on the matter and will not get drawn into a debate.

 

[smartestnumber5]

I had asked my gyn when I went to see her why the cut off age. Since I am 38. She said that they figured that after 26 woman would be having less frequent non monogamas sex. They would have settled down by this age

Yeah I assumed this might be the idea. I can't really understand the kind of thinking your gyn reports though. 26 is the magic age when suddenly everyone settles down?

Not to mention, what does settling down have to do with it? Apparently huge percentages of people have had the virus, yet many of them never have any symptoms.

So even if a 26 year old woman gets into a monogamous relationship (and stays monogamous her whole life), how can she know if her partner has the virus or not? As far as I understand, HPV is diagnosed by visual examination of the resulting warts or women who have an abnormal pap smear can be dna tested, but that there is no dna test for men. Thus suppose Sally and Bob have always used condoms but they're committed and have decided to get tested and then stop using condoms if the std tests come out okay. As far as I understand, Bob's test can come out okay even if he has a strain of HPV, because he can't be tested for it other than if he has warts. To me, that's the scary part! That one can follow all of the wisdom about safe sex--always using condoms until in a committed monogamous relationship in which both parties have been tested--yet they can't actually tell you whether your future husband can infect you with the virus or not! To me, that's good reason that women of any age who have a moderate chance of having unprotected sex in the future with any partner with whom they have not had unprotected sex before, should get the vaccine.

 

[Geoff_M]

Just remember that there are militant foreskin people so they have another interest in putting out this misinformation. Some even posted on this thread.

Wow... I see what you mean!

 

[mjkacmom]

Wow... I see what you mean!

Can someone please let me know why someone would be against a vaccine that uses foreskin? I can't see how it could possibly connect to the circumcision debate.

 

[mickeyfan2]

Can someone please let me know why someone would be against a vaccine that uses foreskin? I can't see how it could possibly connect to the circumcision debate.

Ask the person who is against it.

 

[katerkat]

Can someone please let me know why someone would be against a vaccine that uses foreskin? I can't see how it could possibly connect to the circumcision debate.

If the babies weren't circumcised, the foreskin would not be available to be used for the vaccine. Hence, circumcision is providing the foreskins to the vax makers.

(Note: I am not a militant anti-circ-er. I just read a mommy board that is full of them.)

 

[bananiem]

Ok. Since we didn't see a reason to have our son keep his foreskin I am perfectly happy to donate it to medical research to find a vaccine or cure for any disease that's out there.
Unfortunately he's 10 and we didn't keep it. Oh, and he still loves his mother.

 

[mjkacmom]

How about if they used the foreskin from corpses? Also, since it's been shown that HPV is spread more readily from uncircumcized men, it seems that it's just good karma to use foreskins in the vaccine!