New HPV Vaccine Causing A Stir

Gardasil, a relatively new HPV vaccine, has been the focal point of much political and social controversy of late in Canadian media. Saskatchewan, however has to date been quiet on the subject, and currently has no plans as to whether or not it will be providing free immunization to school age girls.

Background: (All information comes from Health Canada website unless otherwise stated.)

• Health Canada estimates HPV to be the most common STI nationally and around the world.


• Some types of HPV lead to cervical cancer, and some others to genital warts.


• Cervical cancer kills about 400 women a year in Canada. (CBC News Article)


• Health Canada estimates 75% of sexually active people will have at least one HPV infection in their lifetime, although only a small proportion would potentially develop cancer.


• Gardasil protects against two HPV strains that cause about 70% of cervical cancer, and two other strains that cause about 90% of genital warts.


• Use of Gardasil is recommended by the National Advisory Committee on Immunization for:
  Females between 9 and 13 years of age, before the onset of sexual intercourse;
  Females between the ages of 14 and 26 years of age, even if they are already sexually active, have had previous pap abnormalities, or have had a previous HPV infection.


• The federal government allocated $300 million in the last budget to help provinces with HPV vaccination programs. (CBC News Article)


• Ontario, PEI, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland have already begun programs giving free vaccinations to school age girls with parental consent. (GlobeandMail Article)

Despite great results over 5 years of clinical trials involving 20,000 individuals, there have been a number of points of opposition to the vaccine. A CBC News article points out that some more socially conservative parents are worried that the vaccination may “encourage promiscuity and provide a false sense of invulnerability to sexual disease.” Others are concerned that there is not yet enough long term data to determine the true effectiveness of the vaccine or possible negative long term side-effects. Some parents are also questioning the motives of Merck Frosst Canada Ltd (the company that is marketing Gardasil) who stand to make huge profits, or the motives of politicians looking for votes. Catholic school boards, most notably in Toronto, have also shown opposition as their schools are trying to teach abstinence as the best protection against sexually transmitted disease.

In spite of the opposition, many groups (especially in the medical field) are supporting the vaccine, even highly encouraging it for all young girls. The Canadian Pediatric Society representing 2,500 pediatricians across Canada officially endorsed the vaccine in a position paper released yesterday according to a Leader Post article. Other supporters of the Gardasil vaccination include the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada, and the Federation of Medical Women of Canada.

The key in administering the vaccination is making sure it happens before girls become sexually active. This is really the underlying cause of the controversy in my opinion, because parents don’t want to think of their kids having sex at such a young age. Vaccinating 9 year olds against a sexually transmitted infection is going to lead to a conversation that some parents might not yet be ready to even think about. The fact is that Gardasil is statistically shown to be a very safe and effective vaccine and is the only one of its kind. The only important question should be is this going to save lives, and is this going to lead to improved public health? Ultimately parents and their children will have the final say, so if a large portion of the funding has already been made available for the vaccination, what objection should parents or policymakers in Saskatchewan really have?