There has been a lot of publicity recently about the dangers of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. Many of them are unfounded, misleading and dangerous and could possibly impede our continued efforts in our fight against cervical cancer. This article is an effort to counter this and inform all concerned about the true side effects associated with this vaccine.
The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is derived from the protein material of human papillomaviruses without any genetic material associated with the virus. The CDC and FDA monitor the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (or VAERS). This system is a reporting mechanism for ANY adverse event after vaccination and allows detection of any safety issues. There are known limitations to this system, such as variable data quality, variable reporting (both underreporting and stimulated reporting). This also fails to assess the link between cause and effect. Despite these limitations, this system is the best available and is accessible to all comers.
Of more than 28 million doses of this vaccine administered through January 2010, 16,000 episodes of adverse events were reported to VAERS. More than 90 percent of these were non-serious events and included injection site irritation, nausea, headaches, and fainting, especially in the adolescent age group. It is recommended that patients be vaccinated while sitting up and observed for about 15 minutes for fainting spells before being discharged home.
Regarding the serious events that were reported, the most common was an entity called Venous Thrombotic Events (VTE). “Blood clot in the veins” in simple language! Investigations of these events revealed comorbid conditions such as obesity, oral contraceptives, smoking, and other contributing factors that could explain these thrombotic events. Therefore, the association between vaccination and VTE appeared to be coincidental rather than cause and effect. There has not been a single mental retardation event that has been linked in any way or manner to this vaccine.
Reports of death around the time of HPV vaccination were fully investigated and found to be related to conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and viral illnesses. There were no unusual patterns to suggest that the HPV vaccine caused any of these deaths.
In the final analysis, the benefit of HPV vaccination in preventing cervical cancer far outweighs the risks involved. It is my strong recommendation that any adverse event from any vaccine be reported at http://vaers.hhs.gov/index. Only through the concerted efforts of all involved will we be able to discover hitherto unknown effects that may change our current recommendations regarding the safety of this vaccine.
