It is a month shy of a year from the moment when Texas Governor Rick Perry bypassed the state legislature and sign into law an order that would require all twelve to thirteen-year-old girls to be vaccinated with Gardasil.
Gardasil was created by Merck & Co. to protect against strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV, which is the leading cause of cervical cancer.
The controversy lies in that HPV is a common cause of sexually transmitted diseases. There are more than 100 types of HPV, most of which are harmless. Of these 100, more than 30 types are sexually transmitted. Some types of HPV that cause genital infections can also cause cervical cancer and other gynecological cancers. So the government's thought was by making this vaccine required for young girls it would be given before they were sexually active.
This week, news was released from the U.K. saying that two girls have officially died from the vaccine. What was disturbing was the news buried in the article that said the U.S. had also experienced deaths.
Fox News reported, "The two deaths follow the deaths of three U.S. females, ages 12, 19 and 22, who were reported to have died days after receiving Gardasil, which protects against the human papillomavirus - believed to be the leading cause of cervical cancer - was administered. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently reported that 28 women miscarried after receiving the vaccine."
The Food and Drug Administration stands by its original approval of the drug, saying it should not be re-examined.
I will lay it on the line up front. As a mom of a daughter, I will refuse this vaccine. During the first approval of the law, many ridiculed mothers who disagreed with the vaccine saying that they were naïve to believe our girls won't be sexually active and in turn signing their death sentence.
As if judging me would convince me of any difference. The drug was pushed through the approval process by the use of a lot of money by a drug company that doesn't have the best reputation. Do they not remember Vioxx?
This news of the deaths just further justifies my decision. I know several cancer survivors will ridicule me as endangering my daughter's life for just a few deaths.
It is my life. I lived during the time when all my friends were sexually active before the age of 16. I never caved. No, that doesn't mean my daughter won't cave, but if she does she has to face the consequences for that. I am working hard to build morals in her so that when she is of age she knows the right decision to make. It is my job to protect her and giving her that vaccine is not the way for me to do that.
I hope that the states that passed laws requiring this vaccine will reconsider. I am lucky in that Texas has an opt-out form that will allow me to not get the vaccine. I urge parents of girls to be careful in the products that are put into their bodies.
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