Schools denying girls the cervical cancer jab on religious grounds

I think the schools they are talking about are very sensibly using any excuse they can not to be involved with this vaccine. Has it even been trialled in under-15's (which is the group they're now aiming it at)? Nope.

Reading the article I don't think the schools they are talking about are mainstream Catholic state schools:

E.g. "pupils follow strict Christian principles, marry within their own community and do not practise sex outside marriage"

My guess is the 24 schools are more likely to be more exclusive religious schools like Christian Brethren and Muslim schools.

Not that I'm a particular defender of the Cargolic church, but I think this might not be them. I wonder why the article didn't spell out the religious basis of the schools.

that's the BCG vaccination btw

(which everyone knows is useless anyway)

yeah, most people do, most european countries don't even stock it in the pharmacies and if you want it you have to have it imported

I've just posted elsewhere that two of the three Cervarix safety studies are very misleading. As a control the Havrix vaccination was used, which contains the same highly potent adjuvant (AS04 MPL) and which has the same adverse events/reactions reported as have been reported with Cervarix. So that when it's said that the reactions to Cervarix were no greater than the "background" incidence, it was a false comparison. The background incidence of these reactions, many of the auto-immune and profoundly damaging in nature, would have look banal in comparison to Havrix anyway. In addition, when the roll out began the authorities siad they would monitor population reactions. in fact reactions on the roll out have been ignored and dismissed and put down to coincidence. I believe one mother who continued to insist that her daughter's prolonged debilitating illness was due to the vaccination, was actually theatened with having her child taken away from her by social services.

So I'm with those who say no to schools.

I think it's pretty disgusting that schools are considered an appropriate place for such a risky medical intervention.

S

S

Sorry, I'm not being clear.
Imagine 100 hypothetical cervical cancer patients. Almost all of them (probably over 99 of them) will have had a persistent HPV infection.

Out of those 99, around 70 of these cases will have been caused by HPV 16 or 18. The rest will have been caused by other types of HPV.

These 70 women would have been protected by vaccination.
The jabs protect against these two strains (16 and 18) but they don't provide protection against all of the HPV types that lead to cervical cancer.

The virus basically enters cells and causes them to behave abnormally. Sometimes, this change in behaviour can lead to cancer, but not always. The screening programme is there to look for these early changes before they develop into cancer.

My point is that HPV infection is associated with virtually all cases of cervical cancer.

Am aware that smear tests don't look for HPV. Just pointing out that even if we eradicate those 70% ones there will still need to be smear tests to pick up those changes in women who develop CC from other causes.

So does HPV jab work for those 70% of cases or not. I was told by an immunologist that it does ...or I could have misunderstood her.

colouringin, sorry but you've been misinformed. HPV causes cervical cancer, but two types (16 and 18) are responsible for 70% of the cases. The other 30% are caused by other types of the virus.

Smear tests don't look for HPV, they look at cervical cells, specifically for early changes that may (or may not) lead to cervical cancer. The idea is that if these changes are detected early, they can be dealt with quickly and (relatively) easily.

Im totally pro the vaccination, dont get me wrong. I just wondered what could be causing mine? My friend is exactly the same.

HPV causes 70% of cervical cancers. The other 30% due to other causes hence we will still need the smear.

lightouse - HPV infection is the leading cause of cervical cancer but not the only one. I'm no expert though so can't tell you much more than that, I'm afraid.

PigletJohn You're right, of course. I shouldn't have said that. Not everyone knows that it's useless.

Our local Catholic secondary school advises that it is given....both my nieces have attended the school and both had the jab.

for example this fellow doesn't seem to know it, and neither do I

a BCG vaccination (which everyone knows is useless anyway)

no, you're wrong there.

Im being really thick but, I hope someone can enlighten me. Ive had treatment twice and still go for six month smears but, Ive never had hpv. So, what could be causing my changes?

I was appalled by the article and I just hope it wont be the case and my DN's new catholic school in September.

Hey, PigletJohn I think enforced/mandated vaccination is pretty bad myself, so actually I would agree with him. I just read something where a Chinese man was sent to a labour camp in 2011 for complaining about his son's adverse reaction to a BCG vaccination (which everyone knows is useless anyway) but it'll never come to that in the good ol' US of A (or here) will it?

Hey, sossiges, I just love your anti-vaccination link

I especially loved the author suggesting that states which sponsor vaccination have nazi, stalinist or communist tendencies. I am guessing the author was writing for an American audience.

"Worse are the States, such as Massachusetts, New Jersey and Maryland, where forced vaccinations have either been mandated by the courts, the state legislature, or have such legislation pending. All of such policies strongly resemble those policies found in National Socialist empires, Stalinist countries, or Communist China."

Outrageous that schools can put girls at risk in this way. It's up to parents and girls to decide whether they want the vaccine, not up to bigots and misogynists who want to control female sexuality and are pretty darn confused about why people start having sex in the first place.

Herd immunity...

I'm wondering why it isn't being rolled out in the UK to boys in schools. I thought the aim with most things was herd immunity? Or is it different with vaccination?

I genuinely don't know the difference.

t.i. a.