Gardisil: Is it Worth the Risk

Gardasil is the vaccine that can prevent certain types of cancer and genital warts caused by the Human Papilomavirus or HPV. Some studies are now showing that the vaccine may also cause death or other medical complications. Several girls have died after getting the shot and as many as 1,700 have reported complications which include fainting and a disorder called GBS, which weakens the Immune system. Guillain-Barre Syndrome or GBS is a paralyzing side effect that has occurred with other vaccines.

The New York Post reported that Gardasil may be the cause of some medical problems girls are having after being given the vaccine. At least 13 million injections have been given since the FDA approved Gardasil in 2006.

Merck, the company that manufactures Gardasil, monitors reports of side effects, but a spokes person for the company says, "An event report does not mean that a casual relationship between the event and the vaccination has been established -- just that the event occurred after vaccination."

After analyzing the Federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), The National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC) reported serious health problems after getting the Gardasil vaccine. They found that one third of the adverse event reports made to VAERS, were children 16 and under, with 25 percent of those children having received one or more of the 18 other vaccines at the same time as the Gardasil vaccine. Merck did not study what medical problems could arise from having multiple vaccines simultaneously.

The NVIC is now asking the FDA and the CDC to give a warning to doctors and parents that Gardasil should not be given with other vaccines. They also ask that girls should be monitored for at least 24 hours for medical problems such as, fainting, seizures, numbness, tingling and vomiting.

Parents should know that there are four times as many girls having adverse effects from Gardasil vaccination compared to those kids getting the tetanus-diptheria-pertussis vaccination.

The NVIC has also reported that several reports of HVP infection, genital warts and cervical lesions have been reported to VAERS, after having been given the Gardasil vaccine. It wasn't known whether the gardasil vaccine failed to work or if the girls were already infected before they were given the vaccine. Because girls are not routinely tested for HPV infection before they are given the Gardasil vaccine, there is a chance many girls getting the vaccine already have the disease.

VAERS depends on voluntary reporting of health problems after having a vaccination and even though health care providers are mandated to report adverse reaction to vaccinations, it is thought that only about 10 percent are actually reported. If this is true, then there could be thousands of girls who have suffered health problems after getting the Gardasil vaccine which could turn into long term health problems, and were never reported.

Do we really know enough about the long term effects of Gardasil to be mandating it to our children?