Merck suspends lobbying for Gardasil vaccine

Nurses Activism

Published

found at healthleadersmedia.com:

merck suspends lobbying for vaccine

pediatricians, gynecologists and even health insurers all call gardasil, the first vaccine to prevent cervical cancer, a big medical advance. but medical groups, politicians and parents began rebelling after disclosure of a behind-the-scenes lobbying campaign by gardasil's maker, merck & co., to get state legislatures to require 11- and 12-year-old girls to get the three-dose vaccine as a requirement for school attendance.

ap/yahoo, feb. 21, 2007

Specializes in Assisted Living Nurse Manager.

I have not read this entire thread, but when I came upon it I thought about some information just shared with me by my sons girlfriend. She has been doing some research on Gardasil. I am not trying to scare anyone but it seems that there has been some major side effects of the vaccine. Here is the link:

http://www.nvic.org/Diseases/HPV/pr022107HPV.htm

Specializes in Nursing Ed, Ob/GYN, AD, LTC, Rehab.

I have no trouble with the pharmaceutical companies making a profit. They produce a product and deserve to reap the rewards of that and go on to make new and better drugs for the public in the future, thats not evil its business. And if there is an opt out option I don't see any problem, people can make up their own minds

Specializes in Peds.
I agree the pharmaceutical companies agendas are as suspect as the petro-chemical companies agendas. The big businesses do however seem to have governments in their pockets.Or am I just a dumb conspiracy theorist?

Oh no, you're not a dumb conspiracy theorist. Here in the US, our 'government' in bed with the pharmaceutical companies, the health insurance companies and big oil. HMMM, can we say Haliburton for example? Oh, and how about the one where we can't get prescriptions from Canada because they may not be safe (even though they were made right here in theUS and shipped there). They don't give a rat's rear end about the rest of us.

Specializes in all kinds of peds.

One of my very good friend's daughter DIED shortly after recieving this vaccine. This young lady was 19 y.o. and in very good health. She was heading out for a run (yes- really) and collapsed in the hall of her college dorm. The autopsy revealed a huge clot (pulmonary) and many small clots all throughout her blood supply. The ED doctor told my friend (mom) that she had not seen anything quite like it. She was on low dose BCP's to decrease skin issues. Her family had NO cardiac or blood disorders or history.

Merck and the FDA still insist that the vaccine is safe, there have been close to 10,000 adverse reactions reported to the VAERS system. Many are not serious but there has been more than one case of Guillian-Barre syndrome and other strange neurological syndromes affecting previously healthy young ladies that have received this vaccine. I believe that the number of deaths is at 20, last time I checked. There have been millions of doses given, so Merck states these deaths are no BIG DEAL. But, let me tell you if it's your kid or a kid you love, it most certainly is...

In the US, cervical cancer is not an epidemic and can be caught early and treated successfully with regular PAP screening. Having the vaccine does NOT remove the need for this screening. And HPV, even though it is highly transmittable (sexually) it is NOT something that you will get by sitting next to a classmate, like measles. So, the push to mandate this vaccine is obviously a result of heavy lobbying and inappropriate marketing (fear mongering). I am a peds nurse and all for vaccines and even mandating vaccines that are appropriate. This simply is not something that should be mandated.

Recent articles have discussed the long term efficacy of this drug and that the cost to immunize and then re-immunize in addition to PAPS may be much less cost effective and less clinically effective in reducing cervical cancer than PAPs alone.

In 3rd world countries, this vaccine could truly save lives as PAPs are not done regularly- but you don't see Merck giving it away... it's been heavily marketed in the US, UK, Australia and Canada... countries that can pay!

Give your child the injection now, if you must. Or wait, and see how this plays out. It's up to you. Just know that my lovely young friend is certainly "one less"- but not in the sense that Merck is selling.

Specializes in Anesthesia.
One of my very good friend's daughter DIED shortly after recieving this vaccine. This young lady was 19 y.o. and in very good health. She was heading out for a run (yes- really) and collapsed in the hall of her college dorm. The autopsy revealed a huge clot (pulmonary) and many small clots all throughout her blood supply. The ED doctor told my friend (mom) that she had not seen anything quite like it. She was on low dose BCP's to decrease skin issues. Her family had NO cardiac or blood disorders or history.

Merck and the FDA still insist that the vaccine is safe, there have been close to 10,000 adverse reactions reported to the VAERS system. Many are not serious but there has been more than one case of Guillian-Barre syndrome and other strange neurological syndromes affecting previously healthy young ladies that have received this vaccine. I believe that the number of deaths is at 20, last time I checked. There have been millions of doses given, so Merck states these deaths are no BIG DEAL. But, let me tell you if it's your kid or a kid you love, it most certainly is...

In the US, cervical cancer is not an epidemic and can be caught early and treated successfully with regular PAP screening. Having the vaccine does NOT remove the need for this screening. And HPV, even though it is highly transmittable (sexually) it is NOT something that you will get by sitting next to a classmate, like measles. So, the push to mandate this vaccine is obviously a result of heavy lobbying and inappropriate marketing (fear mongering). I am a peds nurse and all for vaccines and even mandating vaccines that are appropriate. This simply is not something that should be mandated.

Recent articles have discussed the long term efficacy of this drug and that the cost to immunize and then re-immunize in addition to PAPS may be much less cost effective and less clinically effective in reducing cervical cancer than PAPs alone.

In 3rd world countries, this vaccine could truly save lives as PAPs are not done regularly- but you don't see Merck giving it away... it's been heavily marketed in the US, UK, Australia and Canada... countries that can pay!

Give your child the injection now, if you must. Or wait, and see how this plays out. It's up to you. Just know that my lovely young friend is certainly "one less"- but not in the sense that Merck is selling.

It is always sad to lose a child, but to just blame it on the vaccine when she was taking low dose BCP which are known to cause blood clots is big jump in cause and effect.

This is from the CDC:

"Deaths

VAERS received 21 reports of death following Gardasil vaccination (17 were U.S. reports, 4 were foreign reports). Of the U.S. reports, only 12 reports contained the level of information adequate for further analysis. After careful review of those reports, VAERS could not establish a causal relationship between vaccination and death.

For the remaining 5 U.S. reports of death, one is in the process of being followed up, and for 4 reports, we were unable to obtain any patient identifying information; therefore, we could not confirm death outcomes.

Note: While Gardasil was being tested in the U.S. before it was licensed, 10 people in the group that received the HPV vaccine and 7 people in the placebo group died during the trials. None of the deaths was considered vaccine-related."

Here is the statistics on cervical cancer death rates:

"The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2008, about 11,070 cases of invasive cervical cancer will be diagnosed in the United States. Some researchers estimate that non-invasive cervical cancer (carcinoma in situ) is about 4 times more common than invasive cervical cancer.

About 3,870 women will die from cervical cancer in the United States during 2008. Cervical cancer was once one of the most common causes of cancer death for American women. The cervical cancer death rate declined by 74% between 1955 and 1992. The main reason for this change is the increased use of the Pap test. This screening procedure can find changes in the cervix before cancer develops. It can also find early cervical cancer in its most curable stage. The death rate from cervical cancer continues to decline by nearly 4% a year. "

It is simple fact that not all women will go in for regular pap smears whether it be for personal or financial reasons.

I don't trust any pharmaceutical company as far as I can throw them, but it doesn't seem like there is enough compelling evidence at this stage to do anything but completely investigate each incident. Keep in mind there are serious adverse events and deaths from all vaccines all the time. Whether there is more from the HPV vaccine is yet to be seen.

I appreciate you posting this new information. I hadn't been aware of any news of potential increased risks with the HPV vaccine until you posted it here.

Specializes in all kinds of peds.

Thanks for adding to the conversation. I am not fully blaming the vaccine for her death but I cannot say I don't believe it contributed. Many people take BCPs both low and high dose, and I don't know the stats but don't think too many 19 y.o. girls drop dead of a huge clot. She had no other risk factors and had been on the pills for over a year.

I do firmly believe that MANDATING this vaccine is absolutely wrong!

I also believe that there will be more deaths and serious issues that will occur related to this vaccine before Merck is forced to adjust labeling.

My hope in posting information is to make people aware so that they can make an educated decision and not just blindly have their children vaccinated. Just because doctors "recommend" something, doesn't mean you have to do it. Do the research first.

Also, the VAERS is only as effective as those who think to report in. I have another young lady who was hospitalized with chest pain and syncope for 3 days. They never could find anything wrong. Approximately 8 months later, she and I were out doing something fun and I told her about my friend's daughter and that she had recently had the Gardasil vaccine prior to her death. My young friend's eye's opened wide and she said, "oh my God, I had that shot about 2 days before I ended up in the hospital."

She was pretty sure that her event was not reported to VAERS... was it related? Hard to say. I am just pointing out some interesting coincidences.

Bottom line. This vaccine is not needed in this country. It should be voluntary and more work needs to be done to prove it's safety before I'd vaccinate any more of my loved ones.

Thanks!

Specializes in Acute Mental Health.

Mandated or not, I would not allow my daughter to get it. I thought that way before this thread and now even more so. I simply won't take a chance on my daughters life because a pharm company comes up with something new. If it's not a life threatening issue, I have the right to just say no.

Specializes in all kinds of peds.

You are lucky! You must live in a state that has not mandated it- that is what must stop and reverse immediately!

Get the word out! Thanks!

Mandating this vaccine only serves Merck and the lobbyists that have been promoting it!

Yes

I've heard that HPV is implicated in prostate cancer. Could the vaccine be targeted at females because of some old sexist ideology men not being considered promiscuous when having multiple sex partners but merely virile. Treat the girls then they won't infect the boys. I don't know. What do you think the meaning is?

Or maybe some reverse sexism by female researchers who believe that men who are promiscuous deserve to get prostate or penile cancer?

If that's true (which I seriously doubt), it's not right either.

BTW, I collect old medical books, and in the pre-antibiotic era, some researchers tried to develop vaccines for syphilis and gonorrhea. Someone even made an acne vaccine, which didn't work either.

Specializes in Anesthesia.
Thanks for adding to the conversation. I am not fully blaming the vaccine for her death but I cannot say I don't believe it contributed. Many people take BCPs both low and high dose, and I don't know the stats but don't think too many 19 y.o. girls drop dead of a huge clot. She had no other risk factors and had been on the pills for over a year.

I think that girls taking BCP are high risk of blood clots. My 20yr cousin had a massive stroke while on BCP and it took several months of PT before she regained full function and was able to return to work.

"Package inserts mention the risk of blood clots. The inserts say that for women ages 20 to 44, one in 2,000 will be hospitalized, Gonzalez reported." from http://www.nbc6.net/health/5421876/detail.html

I would be more inclined to think it was the BCP or possibly a combination of the two that caused your friends daughter's massive blood clot, and I wonder when they were testing the vaccine how many women they looked at that were on BCP as part of the study.

Hopefully, someone will post some more definitive answers as more news/studies come out.

Specializes in ortho/neuro/general surgery.
I have no trouble with the pharmaceutical companies making a profit. They produce a product and deserve to reap the rewards of that and go on to make new and better drugs for the public in the future, thats not evil its business. And if there is an opt out option I don't see any problem, people can make up their own minds

:angthts::uhoh3::no:

and that's all I got to say about that...

Specializes in ortho/neuro/general surgery.

There is no way my girls are getting it. They're both under 10 and if it gets mandated here I'm declining it.

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