WIS News 10 - Columbia, South Carolina | Health Alert: Cervical cancer vaccine

Health Alert: Cervical cancer vaccine

(National) Nov. 18, 2004 - Heather Tucker spent the past four years helping researchers fight cancer and protecting herself for the future, "Since I've received the vaccine, ... it lessens my chances of getting cervical cancer."

She's talking about a vaccine for the common sexually transmitted disease Human Papillomavirus, or HPV, which causes cervical cancer.

Dr. Daron Ferris says, "This vaccine basically was shown to be 100 percent effective in preventing persistent HPV infections with type 16 and 18. Combined the vaccine will theoretically then prevent 70-75 percent of all cervical cancers."

Eighty percent of people will get some type of HPV over their lifetime, though most won't develop into cancer. Dr. Ferris says this finding could do wonders for women's health, "It will likely have an effect on how often and what type of screening women will get in the future as far as pap smear screening."

Once it's approved the vaccine would be given to kids 10 to 12 before they become sexually active, just like a flu shot. Ferris says patients can't get HPV from the vaccine, "It works like the immunizations babies get. We fake the baby's immune system into thinking it has measles, but the baby doesn't really get measles."

Heather experienced no side effects, and four years later she says she's still proud to contribute, "I had a grandmother who passed away from cancer."

Dr. Ferris says the vaccine is three to five years from being used commercially. Thirteen hundred woman in North America and Brazil have participated in the study.

The Medical College of Georgia and is still looking for women ages 15 to 25 and men ages 16 to 23. If you qualify and would like more information, log on to www.mcg.edu.

posted 11:00am by Chris Rees