Gardasil Open Thread

Readers, several months ago I pulled together as much information as I could regarding the HPV virus and the Gardasil vaccine. I also challenged you to begin your vaccination process before I finished mine.

Well, today I took my third and final Gardasil shot. I am now protected against the four most prevalent forms of HPV, although I may or may not be cured of the one I already had. Now it’s your turn… holla if you’ve started the vaccination series!

If you haven’t and want to explain why (”I called my insurance but they won’t cover it”) or you want more information, feel free to use the comments for that as well!


4 Responses to “Gardasil Open Thread”

  1. Ilena Rosenthal Says:
    September 8th, 2007 at 3:51 pm

    I’m so happy to hear you got your 3 jabs with no problems.

    I was just reading the over 3,100 reports of people with complications (including 7 deaths) soon after their Gardasil shots.

    http://tinyurl.com/2gdlga

    There are REPORTED adverse reactions to what they classify as HPV4 Vaccination

    http://tinyurl.com/2glw25
    These are the deaths reported …

    I was curious as to how long you were told that this new vaccine would be effective.

    Best regards and best of health to you.

  2. Peach Says:
    September 8th, 2007 at 5:06 pm

    Hi Ilena,
    I’m pretty familiar with the adverse reaction reportage, I examined quite a bit of it when I was putting together my infopage, which is here: http://sexcalumny.net/2007/06/01/hpv-gardasil-infopage/
    What I learned was that a great deal of the adverse reactions were experienced by patients with a history of medical allergies or bad reactions to alluminum, which is an irritating ingredient in the vaccine. Since I was getting my info from VAERS, I also scrolled past a lot of adverse reactions and deaths from vaccines for hepatitis, the flu, and others common diseases. This says to me that there is always a risk associated with vaccination, and patients would always do well to do their homework and/or speak with a healthcare provider before making that decision! I hope I made that clear on my infopage.

    Since the Gardasil vaccine is fairly new, Merck and the FDA predict that the vaccine would be effective for 5 years. My doctor, who was involved with the FDA approval of the vaccine, said that they are trying to estimate on the safe side; he anticipates a 10 year efficacy. We shall see.

    Thanks for stopping by!

  3. A.V. Says:
    September 10th, 2007 at 3:04 pm

    I’ve had two shots so far! :)

    Now, my friend(s) at Merck who worked on the vaccine have mentioned that one seemingly-common side effect of the vaccine is irritation at the injection site. (Presumably, I’m guessing, from the aluminum?) I didn’t have any soreness or irritation at the injection site, but I DID have a vagal reaction to the depth and speed of the injection! Gah. I am still mortified by that.

    As a minor public service announcement for others like me, who have had all the normal/mandatory childhood vaccines but perhaps no deeper shots like a flu vaccine, and are wary of the Gardasil vaccine, I recommend asking for the injection in your hip. The midwife who gave me the second injection site either the shoulder or the hip is an allowed injection site, and I didn’t black out when the hip was used. YMMV.

    As a side note, about adverse reactions and even deaths from Gardasil, I have to say that even without any internet research into the proportion of adverse reaction reports from Gardasil to such reports from other vaccines, Gardasil is HARDLY the only vaccine under fire for alleged links between the vaccine and all manner of health problems. At my ex-law-firm job, I did some research on the alleged link between thimerosal (mercury) and autism in children being vaccinated during the ’90s or so.

    My point merely is — of course one should talk to health care provider(s) and consider the risk of a vaccine. But I have absolutely no reason to think Gardasil is more risky than other vaccines.

  4. Kristina Says:
    February 23rd, 2008 at 1:17 am

    My sister received the third shot today and ten hours later is experiencing dizziness, headaches, and naseua. I searched the internet a bit and discovered that this has happened often with girls receiving their third shot. I myself have not received that shot yet. Now, I’m a little scared because oddly enough the night before I was supposed to have the shot, I had the most awful dream. I don’t remember the details but they were enough to scare me away from that shot for another year. I’m glad you didn’t experience the reactions but it’s not the same for everyone.

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