(This text swiped directly from the gardasil website and definitely NOT what I would consider to be TRUE: this is MARKETING. My comments in parenthesis throughout.)
GARDASIL is the only vaccine that may help guard against diseases that are caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) Types 6, 11, 16, and 18:
• Cervical cancer
• Cervical abnormalities that can sometimes lead to cervical cancer
• Genital warts
(Notice the use of the word MAY! They're not even going so far out on the limb as to say that their vaccine actually DOES guard, it only MAY guard. Weak.)
HPV Types 16 and 18 cause 70% of cervical cancer cases, and HPV Types 6 and 11 cause 90% of genital warts cases.
(They sure throw about this "causality" as if they were sure of it. How do you prove causality? It's not easy. More likely they have seen a correlation.)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT GARDASIL
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.
(may not)
Anyone who is allergic to the ingredients of GARDASIL should not receive the vaccine.
(what are the ingredients so that I can assess my potential allergic issues?)
GARDASIL is not for women who are pregnant.
GARDASIL will not treat cervical cancer and genital warts and will not protect against diseases caused by other HPV types.
GARDASIL is given as 3 injections over 6 months and can cause pain, swelling, itching, and redness at the injection site, fever, nausea, and dizziness.
Only a doctor or healthcare professional can decide if GARDASIL is right for you or your daughter. Ask about GARDASIL today.
(you can't decide for yourself, according to them ONLY A DOCTOR can decide for you)
GARDASIL is for girls and women ages 9 to 26. GARDASIL works when given before you have any contact with HPV Types 6, 11, 16, and 18.
(Age range: 9-26. What about us older ladies? Don't you care about US getting cervical cancer? Or do you think we don't have sex anymore? That's what you might think if you get your reality checks from TV and movies.)
If you've already been infected with HPV, you may still benefit from GARDASIL because it is unlikely that you have been infected with all 4 types of the virus covered by the vaccine. Your doctor or healthcare professional can help you understand more.
(Wouldn't want to limit the market by ruling out folks who already have one kind of virus!)
Here's what the people have to say:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gardasil
From wikipedia:
Safety and efficacy of the vaccine
According to the Centers for Disease Control, the vaccine was tested in over 11,000 females (ages 9 to 26). These studies have shown no serious side effects. The most common side effect is soreness at the injection site. CDC, working with the FDA, will continue to monitor the safety of the vaccine after it is in general use. ***The vaccine does not contain mercury, thimerosal or live virus.[4]
(INGREDIENTS: NO MERCURY, THIMEROSAL-the mercury-containing ingredient, or LIVE VIRUS. We can presume it contains dead virus parts, because that's what a vaccine is. What are the other ingredients???)
The National Cancer Institute says, "FDA-approved Gardasil prevented 100 percent of the precancerous cervical cell changes caused by the types of HPV targeted by the vaccine for up to 4 years after vaccination."
Darren Brown, Indiana University, reported at the 2007 Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy that Gardasil had 38% efficacy against 10 other HPV types responsible for >20% of cervical cancer cases.
APPROVED BY THE FDA: on June 8, 2006.
CDC: According to the American Centers for Disease Control, getting as many girls vaccinated as early and as quickly as possible will reduce the cases of cervical cancer among middle-aged women in 30 to 40 years and reduce the transmission of this highly communicable disease. Unfortunately, there are hurdles to getting this done. These include the limited understanding by many people that HPV causes cervical cancer, the difficulty of getting pre-teens and teens into the doctor’s office to get a shot, and the high cost of the vaccine
COST OF VACCINE AND MANDATORY SHOTS AS COST CONTROL MECHANISM: ($120/dose, $360 total for the three required doses, plus the cost of doctor visits). One way to bring down the cost of the vaccine and to educate the public on the benefits of vaccination is to make it mandatory for girls entering school. This approach has been taken with vaccines for mumps, measles, rubella, and hepatitis B (which is also sexually transmitted) so many state legislators have penned bills that do this. Almost all pieces of legislation currently pending in the states that would make the vaccine mandatory for school entrance have an "opt-out" policy.
THE OTHER VACCINE IS NAMED: Cervarix
Lots of interesting articles from an anti-vaccine org:
http://www.nvic.org/Diseases/HPV/HPVHOME.htm