Pap Clears HPV; Majority Reject Vaccine Mandate

"The act of performing a Papanicolaou smear produces an inflammatory cytokine response, which may initiate immunologic clearance of human papillomavirus (HPV) and reduce the risk of cervical cancer, South African investigators propose in the April 24th online issue of the Journal of Inflammation.....Women who had even a single Pap smear in their history had a lower incidence of cancer. Dr. Passmore's team also observed that "a statistically significant decline in the HPV positivity rate correlated with the lifetime number of Pap smears received"........"This is the first study to our knowledge to investigate the effect of a Pap smear on cervical inflammation," the Cape Town researchers say. The findings, they conclude, are "an important step towards understanding whether these local Pap smear- associated responses are one of the factors initiating more long-term protection from HPV infection and clearance." - Reuters News Service, Pap Smears Cause Cytokine Response That May Help Clear HPV, MEDSCAPE , May 14, 2007

"The National Poll on Children's Health also asked parents if they felt, in general, that newly available vaccines were safe for their children..... less than one-half of parents (43%) agreed or strongly agreed that new vaccines are safe for their children. The majority either disagreed that new vaccines are safe for their children (8%) or were neutral (49%). There was a strong relationship between parents' perception of the safety of new vaccines and their views on vaccine mandates. Most parents (75%) who disagreed that new vaccines are generally safe opposed HPV school mandates, and 26% of parents who were neutral on vaccine safety opposed HPV mandates." - C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health

Barbara Loe Fisher Commentary:

Too often in the past quarter century, the push to mandate newly licensed vaccines is based more on ideology, money and politics than on evidence based science. Although public health officials have convinced pediatricians to believe that vaccine injuries and deaths are either a myth or do not matter because the good of "the herd" trumps the value of individual life, parents aren't buying it anymore. Case in point: the rush to put policy before science did not work with the newly licensed HPV vaccine, GARDASIL, marketed by Merck.

HPV infection is a viral infection experienced by most people after they become sexually active with one or more partners, who have also been sexually active with one or more partners. It is an infection which is naturally and asymptomatically cleared from the body by more than 90 percent of girls and women who contract it. In the tiny minority of women, who do not naturally clear the HPV virus from the body and go on to develop chronic infection, the majority can prevent cervical cancer with regular pap smears that can detect pre-cancerous cervical lesions so they can be treated.

But now, there is even more evidence that regular pap smears are a powerful and cost effective weapon in the effort to end cervical cancer. The performing of a pap smear, according to a study published in the April 24 Journal of Inflammation, may help to produce an inflammatory response which initiates immunologic clearance of the HPV virus from a women's body. This would help explain why, in addition to early detection of pre-cancerous cervical lesions, the aggressive pap smear campaign in the US since the 1950's has been so successful in generating a 70 percent drop in cervical cancer cases in the US. It would also help explain why cervical cancer is the number one cancer killer of women in underdeveloped countries, where women living in poverty do not get routine physical exams and pap smears.

In the past six months, public opposition to proposed HPV vaccine mandates for 11 year old girls in America has reflected the fact that Americans are starting to understand what NVIC has been saying for more than two decades: when it comes to vaccines, policy often precedes science. HPV vaccine mandates for sixth grade girls pushed by Merck lobbyists seeking to capture the lucrative US market and endorsed by "public health" proponents who have never seen a vaccine they didn't want everyone to take, have been rejected in almost every state legislature in the US. Elected representatives in the states chose to listen to the voters who elected them rather than do the bidding of Merck.

And now, there is quantifiable evidence that public opposition to HPV vaccine mandates is not primarily focused on concern that kids will have sex too soon. A National Poll on Children's Health, conducted through C.S. Mott Children's Hospital and published by the University of Michigan, found that only 44 pecent of American parents support HPV vaccine mandates for young girls. They also found that only 43 percent of American parents agree that new vaccines are safe for their children and that "there was a strong relationship between parents' perception of the safety of new vaccines and their views on vaccine mandates. Most parents (75%) who disagreed that new vaccines are generally safe opposed HPV school mandates."

Public opposition to HPV vaccine mandates, then, is based on public opposition to being forced to use a vaccine for which policy has preceded science.

Before there is any more talk about HPV vaccine mandates and universal use by all pre-adolescent girls of this new vaccine, there needs to be more basic science research into the biological mechanisms as well as environmental and genetic factors involved in HPV infection, clearance, persistence, and resistance; and research into the biological mechanisms as well as environmental and genetic factors involved in HPV vaccine induced brain and immune system dysfunction, infertility, miscarriage, development of pre- cancerous lesions in girls vaccinated while actively infected with HPV vaccine types contained in the vaccine, and long term effectiveness.

The American public is smarter than public health officials, doctors and drug company lobbyists give them credit for being. People do not want to use or have their children be required to use vaccines which have not been proven safe, effective or necessary.
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Majority of U.S. Parents Not in Favor of State HPV Vaccine Mandates

C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health

A publication from the University of Michigan Department of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases and the University of Michigan Child Health Evaluation and Research (CHEAR) Unit.

Vol. 1, Issue 3; May 22, 2007

Report Highlights


*Only 44% of parents support a school mandate for the HPV vaccine for girls entering 9th grade.
*Parent support is stronger (68%) for a mandate for another new teen vaccine that prevents tetanus, diphtheria, and whooping cough (Tdap).
*Parents of older children are less likely to favor a mandate for the HPV vaccine.
*Parents concerned about safety of new childhood vaccines are less likely to support an HPV vaccine mandate.


In 2006, vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) was recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for all girls aged 11-12 years old. The currently available vaccine prevents infections by 4 different types of HPV, transmitted through sexual contact, that cause cervical cancer and genital warts.

States' legislative action regarding HPV vaccine has generated considerable attention. Virginia has enacted a law requiring HPV vaccination for entry into 9th grade, and 24 other states (including D.C.) have introduced bills to mandate that girls receive the 3- dose HPV vaccine series.

Advocates say that mandates that require children receive certain vaccines before they can enter daycare or school are known to boost immunization rates and protect children's health. Opponents say that vaccination mandates take health decisions out of the hands of parents. The debate is amplified for the HPV vaccine, because the vaccine prevents a major disease-cancer- but HPV infections would not be expected to affect school attendance like other infections for which vaccine mandates exist. Critics also cite concern about the HPV vaccine's cost and safety, and others express moral objections to a vaccine mandate for a sexually transmitted infection.

The C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health asked parents if they would support a state law that requires girls to receive HPV vaccine before entering 9th grade. As a comparison, parents were also asked if they would support a state law requiring boys and girls to get a new booster vaccine that protects against tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough (Tdap), also before entering 9th grade.

As shown in Figure 1, parents were far more likely to support a state school entry mandate for the Tdap vaccine (68%) than for the HPV vaccine (44%). Moreover, 26% of parents strongly disagree or disagree with a HPV vaccine mandate - nearly three times the proportion who disagree with the Tdap mandate.

Women (48%) were more likely than men (38%) to support a state mandate for HPV vaccine. Of note, parents of teens (ages 13-17) were less likely to support an HPV vaccine mandate (40%) than were parents of children 6-12 years old (44%) and parents of children younger than 6 years old (53%).

Parents with public insurance (Medicaid and Medicare) were more likely to support HPV vaccine mandates than parents with private insurance or no coverage.

There were no differences in support for mandates for HPV or Tdap vaccine by region or race/ethnicity, and there was no consistent pattern by parent education, household income or parent age. As shown in Figure 2, the rank order of the top 3 health problems for children differed by the race/ethnicity of the person surveyed. While the list was similar for Hispanics and other race/ethnicity groups to the overall rankings, among whites alcohol abuse nudged above childhood obesity as the third biggest concern.

Attitudes About Vaccine Safety and Mandates

The National Poll on Children's Health also asked parents if they felt, in general, that newly available vaccines were safe for their children. As shown in Figure 2, less than one-half of parents (43%) agreed or strongly agreed that new vaccines are safe for their children. The majority either disagreed that new vaccines are safe for their children (8%) or were neutral (49%).

There was a strong relationship between parents' perception of the safety of new vaccines and their views on vaccine mandates. Most parents (75%) who disagreed that new vaccines are generally safe opposed HPV school mandates, and 26% of parents who were neutral on vaccine safety opposed HPV mandates. Among parents who agreed that vaccines are generally safe, only 16% opposed an HPV mandate. In contrast, among parents who agreed that vaccines are generally safe, 61% supported an HPV mandate.

State Legislation and Parent Opinion on Mandates

The National Poll on Children's Health included responses from parents in 48 states and the District of Columbia. Responses of parents in Virginia and 24 states (including D.C.) considering legislation about HPV school mandates were compared with responses of parents in the remainder of states, to see whether their attitudes about mandates differ.

Overall, there were no significant differences in parent opinions on a state mandate for HPV vaccination for girls when comparing responses from states with an existing mandate or pending legislation (45% in favor of mandates) to states that have not introduced HPV mandate legislation (42% in favor of mandates). In addition, there were no significant differences in opinions between these two groups regarding school mandates for Tdap vaccine.

Implications

State mandates regarding vaccination upon school entry have long been effective ways to help safeguard children's health, but they have become increasingly controversial. In the case of HPV vaccine, mandate proponents argue that states should encourage parents to prevent their daughters from getting cervical cancer caused by HPV infection. Mandate opponents say that HPV vaccination should not be required because the infection is not communicated through respiratory contact and therefore does not pose the same danger to health of school communities as other illnesses prevented by mandated vaccines. Of note, the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics support universal HPV vaccination for girls but do not support mandates for HPV vaccine.

In this National Poll on Children's Health, we found that less than one-half of US parents favor an HPV vaccine mandate for school entry. Moreover, one- quarter of parents unequivocally disagree with HPV vaccine mandates. In contrast, more than two-thirds of parents favor a mandate regarding the new Tdap vaccine - although such a mandate has not been considered by states so widely as HPV mandates.

These findings indicate that the American public is able to distinguish between new vaccines, and that legislative action on HPV may be somewhat disconnected from public sentiment. Ultimately, HPV vaccination efforts may lack the boost given by school entry mandates to other broadly recommended vaccines.

Datasource

This report presents findings from a nationally representative household survey conducted exclusively by Knowledge Networks, Inc, for C.S. Mott Children's Hospital. The survey was administered from March 14- 26, 2007, to a randomly selected, stratified group of adults aged 18 and older with and without children from the Knowledge Networks standing panel that closely resembles the U.S. population. The sample was subsequently weighted to reflect the U.S. population figures from the Census Bureau. The response rate was 73% among Knowledge Networks panel members contacted to participate. This report reflects responses from a subsample of 1342 parents.

C.S. Mott Children's Hospital National Poll on Children's Health

Director: Matthew M. Davis, MD, MAPP Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Internal Medicine and Public Policy

Editor: Dianne C. Singer, MPH Research Associate

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Hi Barbara,
I appreciate your article outlining the risks that are potentially associated with routine child vaccines. Do you know what the research has to say about the prevalence rate of children who have had a severe adverse reaction to the acellular form of the pertussis vaccine? In my research review, the high prevalence rate (1 in 800+) of children having a severe adverse reaction (convulsions, hypotonicity, death) was associated with the older compound, the whole cell vaccine.