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eileenbunny · 03-30-2007, 10:16 PM

I think it's a tough call. I am not eligible for the vaccine because I'm too old, but I'm not sure if I'd get it if I could. I asked my oncologist about it recently and this is what she told me.

First, there is currently a study to find out if Gardasil is causing some people to get Guillain-Barré syndrome which is an auto-immune disease. There is no conclusive evidence to suggest that Gardasil actually does do this, but my doctor wouldn't be surprised if it did since Guillain-Barré syndrome is linked to other vaccinations.

Next she talked about cervical cancer. She explained that cervical cancer is among the slowest growing cancer out there. There are almost always pre-cancerous cells present and detectible well in advance of cancer development. What this means is that no woman should ever have to die of cervical cancer. My oncologist explained to me that every single case of advanced cervical cancer she had ever seen was in a woman who had not been for a routine gynecology appointment in more than 2 years.

Of course, I'm sure there are cases out there where cervical cancer developed more rapidly, but these are extremely rare. As long as it is caught early cervical cancer or the pre-cancerous cells that can turn into cervical cancer are easily treatable. So, regardless of whether or not you decide to get the vaccine or not, please remember how incredibly important it is to see your gynecologist least once a year!

Also, apparently they have no idea how long this vaccine actually lasts. They have a guess, an educated one at that, but really they don't know. That begs the question, do you need to be re-vaccinated and if so, how often?

At $360, it is a pretty pricey vaccine and if Merck gets government agencies to put it on the required list they will not be liable for anything that goes wrong with the people who get it. As a company Merck scares me a little. They certainly are marketing geniuses though.

On the other hand, I've already had cancer three times and I know what it is like to go through treatment for that. It wasn't cervical cancer, but treatment for cancer is treatment for cancer. It's scary and draining. I might consider anything that would help to keep me from having to do that again.

03-30-2007, 10:16 PM	#13 (permalink)
eileenbunny Upright Location: Columbia, MD	I think it's a tough call. I am not eligible for the vaccine because I'm too old, but I'm not sure if I'd get it if I could. I asked my oncologist about it recently and this is what she told me. First, there is currently a study to find out if Gardasil is causing some people to get Guillain-Barré syndrome which is an auto-immune disease. There is no conclusive evidence to suggest that Gardasil actually does do this, but my doctor wouldn't be surprised if it did since Guillain-Barré syndrome is linked to other vaccinations. Next she talked about cervical cancer. She explained that cervical cancer is among the slowest growing cancer out there. There are almost always pre-cancerous cells present and detectible well in advance of cancer development. What this means is that no woman should ever have to die of cervical cancer. My oncologist explained to me that every single case of advanced cervical cancer she had ever seen was in a woman who had not been for a routine gynecology appointment in more than 2 years. Of course, I'm sure there are cases out there where cervical cancer developed more rapidly, but these are extremely rare. As long as it is caught early cervical cancer or the pre-cancerous cells that can turn into cervical cancer are easily treatable. So, regardless of whether or not you decide to get the vaccine or not, please remember how incredibly important it is to see your gynecologist least once a year! Also, apparently they have no idea how long this vaccine actually lasts. They have a guess, an educated one at that, but really they don't know. That begs the question, do you need to be re-vaccinated and if so, how often? At $360, it is a pretty pricey vaccine and if Merck gets government agencies to put it on the required list they will not be liable for anything that goes wrong with the people who get it. As a company Merck scares me a little. They certainly are marketing geniuses though. On the other hand, I've already had cancer three times and I know what it is like to go through treatment for that. It wasn't cervical cancer, but treatment for cancer is treatment for cancer. It's scary and draining. I might consider anything that would help to keep me from having to do that again.