No lineup for vaccine against cervical cancer

[Praxius]

http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/Canada/1050377.html

TORONTO — The Ontario government may have to educate parents and girls about a free vaccine in light of numbers showing half of the eligible Grade 8 girls in Ontario are not taking advantage of a vaccination which "saves lives" by preventing cervical cancer, Premier Dalton McGuinty said Thursday.

Ontario Ministry of Health numbers show 40,000 girls have consented to the first of three vaccines against human papilloma virus (HPV) since they were unveiled with much fanfare last summer. That’s only 53 per cent of the 76,000 girls who are eligible for the free vaccine through their school board.

Halton, York, Durham and Toronto all had thousands of girls who declined the vaccine while in the northern Ontario community of Timiskaming, almost half the eligible girls refused to be vaccinated.

Ontario is spending $117 million over three years to offer the vaccine Gardasil which, if the $400 shots are administered before a girl becomes sexually active, is effective against the strains of HPV responsible for 70 per cent of cervical cancer cases.

Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Ontario introduced vaccination programs after the federal government set aside $300 million in funding. Every year about 550 women in Ontario are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 150 succumb to the disease, McGuinty said.

But since the vaccine is made available though local school boards, some Catholic boards expressed concern that the vaccine might encourage sexual activity outside of marriage. At least one — the Huron-Superior Catholic district school board — debated whether to prevent distribution of the vaccine.

The Ontario Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a statement on the vaccine last fall, saying it was up to parents to decide whether their girls should be vaccinated. The bishops also said further medical research is required because "there is no consensus among those involved in public health in Canada that HPV vaccination is the most prudent strategy" to prevent cervical cancer.

Some medical researchers have also questioned how long the immunity lasts and have expressed concern that the vaccine may cause women to forego safe sex practices and regular pap smear exams which have helped cut cervical cancer rates over the years.

Guylaine Lefebvre, president of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, said she’s hopeful all eligible girls will take the vaccine and put doctors like her out of business.

 

[karrie]

They don't need to educate, they need to prove.

And frankly, until they deem it safe enough and effective enough to offer it to boys as well (those same viruses cause penile, scrotal, perineal, and rectal cancers as well BTW), I feel like they're once again using women's reproductive health as an experiment.

 

[Nuggler]

Not proved safe yet. But:

"But since the vaccine is made available though local school boards, some Catholic boards expressed concern that the vaccine might encourage sexual activity outside of marriage. At least one — the Huron-Superior Catholic district school board — debated whether to prevent distribution of the vaccine."

:blob6:ARGHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!!!
"Hey ma, I can't get cervical cancer now, so I'm goin out and do the football team!!!!"
$^%)(^&*@#""%^&^%% jeebus!!!

Ah well.....................8O

 

[karrie]

I wish I could say they're entirely wrong Nugg. But I've seen too many line ups at our old high school parties, waiting to get to the girl in the back room, to not believe that there are girls out there dumb enough for that kind of thinking.

Regardless, I'd be pushing for the shots and a heavy dose of education to go with it, if it's proven as safe and effective as they say it is. I just thank my lucky stars that my daughter is young enough that I don't need to worry about it just yet, and will probably know definitively about its safety by the time it's an issue for us.

 

[Praxius]

I wish I could say they're entirely wrong Nugg. But I've seen too many line ups at our old high school parties, waiting to get to the girl in the back room, to not believe that there are girls out there dumb enough for that kind of thinking.

Ewww, sloppy 32'nds..... I'd hope there'd be a cleanup intermission.

My old college instructor told us stories like that..... I guess he never got a shot since he drew a big number or something and I guess the girls brother didn't know she was at the party and he was like #8 or something. He said he decided to leave shortly after hearing about this situation and I guess it didn't go over so well.

The lessons we learn throughout life are sometimes suprising.

Although whether he was BS'ing or telling the truth I dunno, but now that you mentioned this above situation, this was the first thing that popped into my head. This situation was in the back of a van though.

Regardless, I'd be pushing for the shots and a heavy dose of education to go with it, if it's proven as safe and effective as they say it is. I just thank my lucky stars that my daughter is young enough that I don't need to worry about it just yet, and will probably know definitively about its safety by the time it's an issue for us.

The reason why they're not shooting boys with it, probably has to do with growing Bresticles.

 

[karrie]

The reason why they're not shooting boys with it, probably has to do with growing Bresticles.

It's an immunization. There shouldn't be a single hormone in it (if there is, my kid's not getting it).

 

[Praxius]

I was just talking side-effect wise generically.... Growing nipples on your testicles is only a theory I have.

 

[DurkaDurka]

Growing nipples on your testicles is only a theory I have.

Dude, you're not supposed to milk those. :smile:

 

[Praxius]

Dude, you're not supposed to milk those. :smile:

Why not? Have a direct source, rather then having to go all loopty-loo through the genitles and out the bigger hole with added stuff to it to make it "appear larger then it actually is?"

Imagine being the first one to lactate in your pants? It'd be named after you, like Praxiuzim Complex Syndrome.

Though getting kicked in the nards might hurt even more.

Damn Bresticles.

 

[DurkaDurka]

Why not? Have a direct source, rather then having to go all loopty-loo through the genitles and out the bigger hole with added stuff to it to make it "appear larger then it actually is?"

Imagine being the first one to lactate in your pants? It'd be named after you, like Praxiuzim Complex Syndrome.

Though getting kicked in the nards might hurt even more.

Damn Bresticles.

lmao

 

[MikeyDB]

So what's the story?

For a very long time... STDS existed and weren't identified as a public health issue... For a very long time many of the conditions that exist today and are yammered about nearly endlessly and turned into "public health issues"..... From bottled water to immune system weaknesses.... how has the modern life of prosperity and technological advance improved our situations?

Does anyone believe that the bulk of responsibility for everything from compromised immune systems to flu injections are that our "way-of-life" has changed so significantly that we're being led down the garden path...?

If you live in an urban environment and breathe-in automobile exhaust for years....will that affect your respiratory system.... if you eat fast-food particularly burgers satrurated with estrogen and anti-bacterial agents given as medicine to beef cattle...will that show up down the road as ADD or ADHD ....?

If you roll your eyes and inhale shaply when you find out that there's a "popular girl" that surfs from party to party and from partner to partner...what's the caliber of parenting that's behind this phenomenon...?

OK the flu shot doesn't work...the last time I had a shot I got the flu and ended up in hospital...

Bottled water is a farce and we're all just soooooo happy with instant this and immediate that.....

Has the over-all IQ of Canadians simply dropped and no one is willing to adimit it?

What happened to being responsible for your children's health and behaviour?

Wow ain't progress swell....

 

[karrie]

Has the over-all IQ of Canadians simply dropped and no one is willing to adimit it?

What happened to being responsible for your children's health and behaviour?

Wow ain't progress swell....

Actually, standardly measured 'IQ' has gone up with each new generation.

And perhaps therein lies the problem. Hours upon hours of homework, and a lack of real world, practical knowledge that can't be measured on stupid tests.

 

[MikeyDB]

Karrie

Maybe or maybe it's further evidence that as a species we'd rather avoid admitting responsibility for what's happening to our world our children and our sense of duty to our family friends and the world at large....

When "road-rage" is something that makes headlines and chat forums are filled with discussion about how maladapted people are to living among people....there's something fundamentally wrong!