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They'll need a new excuse to oppose an HPV vaccine
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| Contributor | ArmyDem |
| Last Edited | ArmyDem Oct 07, 2005 01:12pm |
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| Category | Blog Entry |
| News Date | Friday, October 7, 2005 07:00:00 PM UTC0:0 |
| Description | Posted 1:54 pm | Printer Friendly
This probably won't get the attention it deserves, so take a moment to consider the breakthrough and its political implications.
"An experimental vaccine against cervical cancer has moved a step closer toward becoming the first cancer vaccine of any kind on the market.
Scientists are reporting Friday that the vaccine was 100% effective in preventing cervical cancer and precancerous changes tied to two types of a common sexually transmitted virus."
The issue is a vaccine that targets human papillomavirus (HPV), a rapidly spreading venereal disease, which, in some cases, causes cervical cancer. A vaccine could prevent more than 200,000 women from dying of cervical cancer each year (including 5,000 here in the United States). As New Scientist recently reported, deaths from cervical cancer could jump fourfold to a million a year by 2050, mainly in developing countries, all of which are preventable with this vaccine.
Kevin Ault, an Emory University obstetrician/gynecologist who did his research on the vaccine at the University of Iowa, said preteens and adolescents, sexually active or not, could receive the HPV vaccine along with the other shots they're required to get — and according to the research, it's literally 100% effective.
This is a major medical achievement, right? Surely anyone concerned about public health will be thrilled at the opportunity to reduce cervical cancers through a safe and readily-available vaccine, right?
For the "pro-family" Republican base, not so much. |
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