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Gardasil side effects prompt CDC study

August 13, 2008 — 6:06am ET | By Christe Bruderlin-Nelson
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Merck is likely quite displeased with the barrage of negative press about its cervical cancer vaccine's side effects, especially after a public interest group, Judicial Watch, released a report at the end of last month saying there were 9,749 adverse reactions and 21 reported deaths related to Gardasil in the last two years. 

According to the report, there have been 78 severe outbreaks of genital warts, six cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome and at least 10 miscarriages reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) since the approval of Gardasil. However, a study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that clinicians, patients and drug companies report only about 10 percent of side effects to VAERS, so the actual number of Gardasil side effects could be much higher.

Some experts say Merck has also overstated the vaccine's effectiveness and that the evidence just isn't there yet. In light of the potential side effects and the drugs' young female target audience, many also are questioning Merck's continual push to place the drug on state mandatory vaccine lists.

For its part, Merck says there is no evidence that the vaccine and the reported side effects and deaths are related, and the CDC plans to release a study in October that will help determine whether a true linkage between Gardasil and the reported adverse reactions exists. 

- see more at News Inferno
- read the story at ABC 
- get an alternative view at Natural News

Related Articles:
CDC details side effects reported on Gardasil
Gardasil: Some good news for Merck
Flat Gardasil sales trigger Merck sell-off
EMEA affirms Gardasil after two deaths

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Comments (3) | Post a comment
More stories about Vaccine   Merck   Gardasil   drug safety  

Comments

By Anonymous | Posted 7:40am | August 14, 2008

Have you ever seen someone with
"Guillain-Barré syndrome"

I have and watched them DIE!

This shot would scare me to death, I am happy that I don't have a daughter for them to kill!!!

By Laura J. | Posted 8:25am | August 14, 2008

If you want to blow a whistle- blow it on the media and Judical Watch: which have both been irresponsible with the data. No death has actually been attributed to Gardasil. Of the 18 I have seen reported it broke down as follows:
3 in review
7 no proof of death (certificate/autopsy, etc..)
1 suicide
1 drug overdose
2 flu related
1 diabetes related
2 blood clot related
1 - inconclusive in an oral contraceptive user (blood clot risk)

Please keep in perspective that even though ~10,000 "side effects" have been reported (which haven't even been causally linked to Gardasil), 16 million doses have been given total. These are small numbers and have not clustered in a way that suggests a pattern of expected side effects.

By Dave C | Posted 12:07pm | August 14, 2008

To anonymous - I have seen someone die from Guillain-Barré syndrome and I have seen 20 times more people die from cervical cancer. Cervical cancer cases and deaths have dropped dramatically in the US in the last 50 years due to PAP testing and treatment. This is not true in the undeveloped world where tens of thousands of women die each year of this disease.
Everyone - please use reason and not emotion. Understand the data and think. Vaccines in general are good, the diseases are bad. There is not a government, doctor, pharma conspiracy to kill people. Get real.
PS My 12 year old daughter has received her 3 Gardisil immunizations