You might have noticed recently that the makers of the new HPV vaccine Gardasil really really really want you to try their product. I think the TV commercials are running about every 7.5 seconds. I admit that I tend to be pretty skeptical of the whole women’s health “industry”, so after seeing the ads about five million times, I decided to do some research.
[EDITED TO ADD: We finally finished the follow-up to this, 10 More Things You Might Not Know About Gardasil for those of you who would like even more, current info!]
10 Things You Might Not Know About Gardasil
1. The vaccine only decreases your chances of getting cervical cancer, it doesn’t eliminate the risk.
Straight from gardasil.com:
“HPV Types 16 and 18 cause 70% of cervical cancer cases.
GARDASIL may not fully protect everyone and does not prevent all types of cervical cancer, so it is important to continue regular cervical cancer screenings.”[1]
Merck is upfront with this information; they don’t try to hide it or spin it. But with all of the media coverage and information floating around about the „100% effective cancer vaccine“, it’s helpful to remember that Gardasil is only 100% effective at doing what it is supposed to do, which is preventing certain specific types of HPV, not preventing all cervical cancer. (mehr …)