Huntsville Hospital for Women & Children - Women's Connection Newsletter

Is the HPV Vaccine Safe?

Donald Aulds, M.D.

In May 2006, the Food and Drug Administration approved the HPV vaccine (Gardasil) for administration to young women ages 9 to 26 to attempt to block four of the viruses that are believed to cause approximately 70 percent of the cases of cervical cancer. Of all the types of high risk HPV viruses known, the four virus types were believed to cause the highest risk. In the two years since the introduction of the vaccine, complications have been noted. The following data is being presented in order to allow the public to decide if the vaccine is right for them or not.

The Judicial Watch group, a public interest group that monitors federal agencies, released a report on June 30, 2008, on Gardasil after reviewing all of the data that is available under the U.S. Freedom of Information Law. The following data is a synopsis of the data reported by Judicial Watch:

Gardasil is a prophylactic, preventative vaccine and will not treat pre-existing HPV infections and is not a cancer vaccine or cure.
Gardasil is marketed as a vaccine that prevents cancer but it “…has not been evaluated for the potential to cause carcinogenicity or genotoxicity.”
Gardasil is not 100 percent effective against all HPVs. It is designed to protect against only four strains of HPV, even though there are over 30 strains, including at least 15 that can cause cancer.
While Gardasil is the most expensive vaccine ever to be recommended by the FDA, its long-term effectiveness is unknown and could be as brief as only two or three years.
During testing, an aluminum-containing placebo was used. Aluminum can cause permanent cell damage and is a reactive placebo, unlike most standard saline placebos. The means that tests of Gardasil may not have given an accurate picture of safety levels.
Although some states are considering making it mandatory for young girls to get the Gardasil vaccine, it has not been tested with other vaccines commonly given to children. There are ten commonly administered adolescent vaccines.
Gardasil is still in the testing stages and will not be fully evaluated for safety until September 2009. The Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) shows that as many as 18 people have died after receiving Gardasil.

Since the introduction of the vaccine, over 8,000 various reactions to Gardasil have been reported. The most common reaction has been local reaction and pain at the injection site which usually resolves within one hour to several days. There have been cases of wart outbreaks in young girls who have never had the genital warts prior to the injections. Cases of spontaneous miscarriages have occurred at a higher frequency if the young lady gets pregnant soon after getting the vaccine. Guillain-Barre syndrome has been reported which is an immune response to foreign antigens such as infectious agents or vaccines leading to paralysis of the person that can last the rest of a person’s life. Since January 2008, there have been six cases of Guillain-Barre syndrome after receiving the vaccine. Also, 18 deaths have been reported since May 2006. Seizures have been reported within a few hours after receiving the vaccine in several patients without a history of seizures.

The REAL Women of Canada group reported on the lack of proper testing before Gardasil was pushed through the approval process: “The long-term consequences of Gardasil are not known. The manufacturer admits this and agrees it does not know its effect on young girls’ cancer risk, on their immunity system, on their reproductive system, or its genetic effects.”

It may take 20 to 30 years before these questions are fully answered when these young girls are women and may have undergone major side effects.

Cynthia Janak, a freelance journalist and researcher, reported recently that “the evidence in the FDA’s documentation shows that they know that HPV is not the actual cause of cervical cancer but the actual cause is a persistent HPV infection that may act as a tumor promoter in cancer induction. What we have here is proof that there is scientific evidence that has been published in the past 15 years that states that HPV infection does not bear a direct relationship to the forming of cervical cancer. It also tells us that HPV, if allowed to, will be taken care of by our own body’s natural process. Most infections are short-lived and not associated with cervical cancer.”

The Judicial Watch group’s press release concluded: “It could well be that the vaccine may not do a thing to protect anyone from cervical cancer, regardless of the claims being made by Merck Pharmaceutical. What the vaccine is causing is death and immune suffering among those who have been vaccinated.”

This topic will need to be discussed with your physician before considering the vaccine for yourself or your daughter.

More about Dr. Aulds

Donald G. Aulds, MD is an Obstetrician and Gynecologist and currently serves as the Medical Director for both the Women's Center and the Best Start Program of North Alabama. He is a Diplomat of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Fellow of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

Dr. Aulds completed his medical education at Louisiana State University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA and his Internship and Residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Ochsner Medical Foundation, New Orleans, LA.

Dr. Aulds has been an active member of the Huntsville Hospital Medical Staff since 1980.