New Vaccine=New Hope?
by Cathy Cudmore
A new vaccine that assists in the fight against cervical cancer has been making a splash in news all over the nation in the past few months, appearing in women’s magazines like Cosmopolitan and Jane, popping up in email boxes as online E-cards that women can send to inform their girlfriends, and probing the nation’s curiosity in news stories courtesy of the New York Times. Gardasil, the vaccine manufactured by the pharmaceutical company Merck, can help to prevent up to four strains of HPV, Human Papilloma Virus, which is the leading cause of cervical cancer and is also known for causing genital warts. The HPV vaccine is the first vaccine specifically designed to prevent cancer. This will bring hope to many women in a world where cervical cancer is the second-leading cause of death for women.
The vaccine won approval from the FDA on June 8th, 2006. Gardasil does not prevent against all types of HPV, but it can prevent other symptoms of HPV such as genital warts and other cervical symptoms that may lead to cancer. Two types of HPV that are prevented by the new vaccine, HPV-16 and 18, cause 70% of cervical cancer cases. The other two strains, HPV-6 and HPV-11 cause 90% of genital warts. The vaccine is not helpful if a person has already contracted one of the four types of the disease, but can prevent contracting any of the other 3 types. Gardasil is given as 3 injections over 6 months to girls and women ages 9-26. Scientists say the earlier the vaccine is received, the better the chances of avoiding infection, explaining the approval for the youngest age of 9 years. As for the price, the wholesale price is $120 per dose; $360 for all three doses. In tests checking for immunity, the vaccine has remained protective for up to four years so far. For preventing vaginal and vulvar cancers, it has been protective for at least two years.
There are some side effects, such as pain, swelling, itching, and redness at the injection site, fever, nausea, and dizziness. Other than these, Gardasil has been proven to be 100% successful in clinical trials and extremely safe. According to an associate professor of pediatrics at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center in a statement to reporters, this is “one of the safest vaccines ever tested.” However, women still need to have the annual Pap smear to check for signs of cervical cancer. GlaxoSmithKline is rumored to be manufacturing their own vaccine: Cervarix. This vaccine, however, targets only two HPV strains, HPV-16 and HPV-18, the ones most commonly linked to cancer. While these new developments are targeted specifically for aiding in the fight against women’s cancer, hopefully the vaccines will be a start to even more scientific breakthroughs in the fight against all types of cancer.
