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2010: human papillomavirus (HPV)
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Humun Papillomavirus (HPV)
Writer
Jamie Thunder
On the 28th of September 2009 in Coventry, UK, a 14-year-old girl died. Two hours earlier, she had received the controversial human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine at her school. What happened next was an abject lesson in how the media can and does distort and lie in pursuit of an agenda.
The HPV vaccine protects against infections that can cause cervical cancer. In the UK we use Cervarix, but in the States it’s Gardasil, which also protects against genital warts. Since September 2008 all 12- and 13-year-olds have been vaccinated in the UK, and there’s a catch-up campaign to vaccinate 13- to 18-year-olds.
There has, however, been criticism of the vaccine from some people. You see, according to Wikipedia, around 70% of instances of cervical cancer are caused by HPV types 16 and 18 being sexually transmitted. This has led to the vaccine being derided – both in the UK and the US – as a ‘promiscuity drug’ that will lead to more awkward, incompetent teenage sex.
That’s right. These people actually believe that there are teenage girls out there who desperately want sex but are waiting for a cervical cancer jab first. Chlamydia, herpes, pregnancy... apparently all of no concern to these would-be nymphos who just want a little prick.
