Health Department in Utah Bans Gardasil; The CBCD Urges the CDC to Re-examine the Benefits of the HPV Vaccine
Rochester, NY (PRWEB) December 09, 2013 -- Utah’s Southwest Health Department has banned Gardasil, “citing low demand, high costs - and questioning the benefits (1).” In contrast, many health departments and doctors across America continue to recommend Gardasil as prevention against HPV infection. These state health departments and doctors rely on government agencies like the CDC for their information. Utah is not alone. As it turns out, the health ministries of Japan and Israel have both raised serious concerns regarding the HPV vaccine.
In June 2013, the Drugs.com website reported that the Japanese government “has withdrawn its recommendation for vaccination after receiving hundreds of side effects reports of long-term pain and numbness, among other things (3).” Criticism of the Gardasil vaccine has also come from Israel. Dr. Uzi Beller, an international authority on gynecological cancers who treats patients on a daily basis, came out publicly against vaccinating 65,000, 14-year old girls in Israel with Gardasil, according to an article published in The Jerusalem Post on September 21, 2013 (4).
Dr. Beller voiced his criticism of Gardasil vaccination at “a meeting in Tel Aviv … (with) 40 leading experts on gynecology, oncology, women’s health, vaccines and other specialties (4).”
When describing his opposition to Gardasil vaccination, Dr. Beller said, “I am not at all against vaccines. I just underwent the oral polio vaccination as the Health Ministry instructed medical institutions to give the two drops to every doctor who is in direct contact with patients. But, HPV is different from all other vaccines. It is not a vaccination against cervical cancer but against a virus that in some cases causes a premalignant condition, and in a small number of cases, a malignancy (4).”
“…in an interview with The Jerusalem Post in his office, (Dr. Beller) noted that the…pharmaceutical companies that manufacture the vaccine have been extremely aggressive in their lobbying and marketing; the vaccines are worth billions of dollars to them. At the same time, he said, many medical professionals who advocate vaccination have been pushing a “populistic campaign without being familiar with the issue (4).”
Dr. Beller continued by saying, “I would be happy to see a solution to this disease. Unlike mammography, there is no organized health fund screening for cervical cancer required, even though Pap smear testing has been shown to be worthwhile in early detection. I want to see fundamental studies proving efficacy, and they do not exist. The vaccines were tested on mostly white women attending colleges and university – mostly from developed countries and healthy. The data were based on a relatively short-term follow-up period. What is known does not yet justify widespread vaccination of healthy girls (4).”
Utah’s director of the Southwest Health Department agrees, noting that regarding Gardasil, “The science wasn’t good... We had physicians in our community arguing that we not make it available. HPV is absolutely a risk for cervical cancer, but it’s not the only risk (1).” The article went on to quote Dr. Blodgett saying that, “Weighed against the vaccine’s risks, ‘the public isn’t buying it. It’s eroding public trust in immunization programs.’"
“Health experts from Japan and Israel, two of America’s leading allies, have voiced concerns about Gardasil. Now one of America’s state health officials is speaking up against the vaccine. Government health authorities in the CDC should heed these concerns as well.” –Greg Bennett, CBCD
The CBCD believes that health officials and doctors across America should re-examine the benefits of Gardasil.
To discuss this issue with a CBCD representative, journalists can contact The Center at info(at)cbcd(dot)net, or by calling 585-250-9999.
References:
(1) Utah health official bans Gardasil, stirring controversy. Published on December 6, 2013.
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/57224192-78/vaccine-health-percent-utah.html.csp
(2) Should Your Child Get the HPV Vaccine? Published on January 25, 2011.
http://children.webmd.com/vaccines/features/should-your-child-get-hpv-vaccine
(3) Citing Side Effects, Japan Pulls Recommendations For HPV Vaccines. Published in June 2013.
http://www.drugs.com/news/citing-japan-pulls-recommendations-hpv-vaccines-45158.html
(4) HPV: To vaccinate or not to vaccinate. Published on September 21, 2013.
http://www.jpost.com/Health-and-Science/HPV-To-vaccinate-or-not-to-vaccinate-326711
(5) FDA Rejects Gardasil for Older Women. Published on April 7, 2011.
http://www.medpagetoday.com/OBGYN/STDs/25776
The CBCD is a research center recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) non-for-profit organization. The mission of the CBCD is to advance the research on the biology of chronic diseases, and to accelerate the discovery of treatments.
The CBCD published the “Purple” book by Dr. Hanan Polansky. The book presents Dr. Polansky’s highly acclaimed scientific theory on the relationship between foreign DNA and the onset of chronic diseases. Dr. Polansky’s book is available as a free download from the CBCD website.
Hanan Polansky, Center for the Biology of Chronic Disease (CBCD), +1 (585) 250-9999, [email protected]
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