Sex & fertility
Hype about new HPV vaccine is more good marketing than good medicine
June 20, 2006, Yarmouth, Maine — Women to Women, whose website
is one of the most prominent women’s health sites on the internet, posted
a warning today about the recent “hype” over a newly developed vaccine
for HPV, the human papilloma virus, which
affects millions of women.
“The drug company behind the vaccine is already promoting it as a cure-all
solution. The ad campaign, titled ‘Tell Someone,’ has created false
hope among women that this new vaccine will make the HPV problem go away,”
says Marcy Holmes, a practitioner at Women to Women.
“What the commercials don’t make clear is that the vaccine is meant
for very young women who have had no prior sexual contact. What’s worse, while
over 20 strains of HPV are considered high-risk, the vaccine only targets 2–4
of them — hardly a true preventative,” says Marcelle Pick, a founder
of the Women to Women clinic.
Holmes adds, “Many vaccines can have negative effects on health and this new
vaccine has not been studied in sufficient depth or over sufficient time to ascertain
its long-term safety. The truth is we just do not know enough yet to be generating
this kind of hype,” says Holmes.
Responding to reports that the vaccine may even be mandated, Pick comments, “Talk
of mandating such a vaccine for young women is very premature. We simply do
not have enough information to warrant such an extreme step. Little is known at
this point about the vaccine’s long-term
side effects or its interaction with other drugs. In addition, many of the
test study details — information such as whether any recipients were immune
suppressed and other possible drug
interactions — are still unknown.”
“The public relations campaign behind the new vaccine may be good marketing
— or even good shareholder relations — but it isn’t responsible
medicine,” adds Holmes. “I would call this a promising advance that
may one day yield an effective therapy — one we could recommend to our patients.
But not yet.”
Marcelle Pick adds, “My concern is that this kind of public relations campaign
also promotes the idea that there can be a kind of magic pill to solve the HPV problem.
The reality is that HPV infection is a net result of exposure plus a weakened immune
system. There are ways to reduce the risk of exposure and to enhance immune function,
but reliance on a vaccine for HPV may lead women to ignore the underlying causes.”
For more information, see:
Women to Women is America’s leading medical practice devoted to healthcare
for women, by women. Founded over 25 years ago, it has always advocated an approach
to women’s health that combines the best of alternative and conventional medicine.
Through its practice, website, and publications, Women to Women supports over a
million women a year in their efforts to create health and well-being in their lives.
Contact: Donna Poulin, Practice Manager, Women to Women, 3 Marina
Road, Yarmouth, Maine, 04096. Tel: 800-340-5382. E-mail:
dpoulin@womentowomen.com.
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Related to this article:
References & further reading on HPV vaccine
Last Modified Date: 04/19/2011
Principal Author: Genevieve Morgan, Sr. Editor