Would you give your adolescent girls an STD vaccine?

[astegallrnc]

JessHav:

Hi all!
Most opponents of this vaccine say that it will just encourage kids to have more sex, but I don’t buy that. Although this may prevent HPV, it does not prevent the spread of AIDS or the chance of pregnancy, so kids shouldn’t be less cautious. Also, I think that not all girls have to know that they have this vaccine, (like you wouldn’t say "Well, Jennie, now that you have your vaccine, you won’t get harmed by having a little sex,) so it won’t affect their mindset. My only concern is the potential side effects of this vaccine on young girls (since it is so new) but I have no moral problems with it. If other kids are going to have sex (hopefully mine won’t) and it can prevent them from contracting and spreading this harmful disease to women, I don’t see why we should not give it. Am I totally off on this one? What do you think that the Church would say, since it has nothing to do with contraception?

Please give me your opinions so that I can respectfully and accurately represent our faith and parents in general!

Thanks!

I have to agree that this will not encourage sexual activitiy since the statistics in this country indicate that STDs don’t discourage sexual activity. I share your concerns on the safety of this vaccine. I’m just not sure the risks outweight the benefits.

 

[astegallrnc]

ElizabethAnne:

A woman has almost no chance of getting cervical cancer if she remains abstinent before marriage.

If she marries a man who has had no genital contact.

 

[vluvski]

My point is why waste your money treating the symptom rather than the problem itself.

If I get chronic headaches because I need glasses, should I continually dose myself with OTC painkillers, or should I go get glasses?

The money would be better spent promoting abstinence sex education, especially faith based like Family Honor. This would help not only potential victims of HPV, but reduce STDs across the board, thus reducing health care costs, make for much healthier marriages which will decrease poverty, and promote healthier, more wholesome families. The positive effects of this reach every aspect of society.

Bottom line: spend the money teaching kids to respect sexuality, and you will see MUCH MUCH more benefit than simply treating HPV and reducing the prevalence of cervical cancer.

This is coming from someone who, by the way, did not originally choose purity and chastity. I simply don’t buy “they’re going to have sex anyway.” If people really got the information they deserved, this wouldn’t be the problem it is. Some will still do it, but that has never prevented us from taking other measures like enacting laws prohibiting murder or requiring seatbelt use. It is simply irrelevant.

 

[Princess_Abby]

Not that I’m a fan of Planned Parenthood, but a stastic on their website states that an estimated 75% of reproductive-aged women and men have been exposed to genital HPV at some point during sexual activity. This is a stat from 1999, and since then (according to a poster in my old GYN’s office) I’ve seen it presented as an estimated 80%.

Regardless of how much I will promote chastity with my daughter, I’m not going to count on her having virginal men as options for a potential husband. In a little less than eleven years, she will be ten years old and more information might be available about potential side effects, etc. If it happens to be considered safe still, I will almost definitely vaccinate her against this very prevalent STD. She may very well fall in love with a man someday who has repented from a sinful lifestyle but still suffers from remants of it–such as HPV.

Plenty of “what ifs” but I’d rather think in those terms with the statistics being what they are, and not assume she’ll find one of the 20% uninfected invidiuals–and I bet that 80% stat will go up in the future if something isn’t done to stop it.

 

[astegallrnc]

vluvski:

My point is why waste your money treating the symptom rather than the problem itself.

If I get chronic headaches because I need glasses, should I continually dose myself with OTC painkillers, or should I go get glasses?

The money would be better spent promoting abstinence sex education, especially faith based like Family Honor. This would help not only potential victims of HPV, but reduce STDs across the board, thus reducing health care costs, make for much healthier marriages which will decrease poverty, and promote healthier, more wholesome families. The positive effects of this reach every aspect of society.

Bottom line: spend the money teaching kids to respect sexuality, and you will see MUCH MUCH more benefit than simply treating HPV and reducing the prevalence of cervical cancer.

This is coming from someone who, by the way, did not originally choose purity and chastity. I simply don’t buy “they’re going to have sex anyway.” If people really got the information they deserved, this wouldn’t be the problem it is. Some will still do it, but that has never prevented us from taking other measures like enacting laws prohibiting murder or requiring seatbelt use. It is simply irrelevant.

I agree! The “bandaids” being promoted today to address teen sex, unplanned pregnancy, and STDs aren’t working.

 

[CatholicSam]

astegallrnc:

This will probably explain it better than I…
cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol10no11/04-0222.htm

For those who don’t feel like reading an ugly research paper by the CDC, it basically said that when they ran their simulations and estimating 70% of girls would get vaccinated, the number of cervical cancer cases dropped from 9,147 to 422. If boys AND girls got vaccinated, it would drop from 9,147 to 113. So not too many more cases would be prevented. The paper also said that the vaccine costs $300 at puberty, and the booster that’s due in the early 20’s costs $100. I stopped reading it there.

I can’t help thinking about the preliminary research for the Pill though. As Janet Smith told us in her “Contraception Why Not” talk, they started researching a male and female contraceptive pill. One man experienced some shrinkage in his testicles. They abandoned the project. Three women died. They adjusted the dose. It just makes you think why they’re giving the preliminary vaccine to women first…

 

[vluvski]

Princess_Abby:

Not that I’m a fan of Planned Parenthood, but a stastic on their website states that an estimated 75% of reproductive-aged women and men have been exposed to genital HPV at some point during sexual activity. This is a stat from 1999, and since then (according to a poster in my old GYN’s office) I’ve seen it presented as an estimated 80%.

–and I bet that 80% stat will go up in the future if something isn’t done to stop it.

Being exposed is not the same as being infected, unless I’m confused. It would be great if someone could post the estimated rate of infection!

I can only speak for myself, but I’m not in favor of doing nothing to stop it. I don’t think I need to repost my previous rant.

 

[astegallrnc]

CatholicSam:

For those who don’t feel like reading an ugly research paper by the CDC, it basically said that when they ran their simulations and estimating 70% of girls would get vaccinated, the number of cervical cancer cases dropped from 9,147 to 422. If boys AND girls got vaccinated, it would drop from 9,147 to 113. So not too many more cases would be prevented. The paper also said that the vaccine costs $300 at puberty, and the booster that’s due in the early 20’s costs $100. I stopped reading it there.

I can’t help thinking about the preliminary research for the Pill though. As Janet Smith told us in her “Contraception Why Not” talk, they started researching a male and female contraceptive pill. One man experienced some shrinkage in his testicles. They abandoned the project. Three women died. They adjusted the dose. It just makes you think why they’re giving the preliminary vaccine to women first…

Oh now, that is not nice to refer to the lovely CDC research I linked as ugly. You made it further than I… I only read the abstact.

 

[astegallrnc]

vluvski:

Being exposed is not the same as being infected, unless I’m confused. It would be great if someone could post the estimated rate of infection!

I can only speak for myself, but I’m not in favor of doing nothing to stop it. I don’t think I need to repost my previous rant.

According to the CDC
“Approximately 20 million people are currently infected with HPV. At least 50 percent of sexually active men and women acquire genital HPV infection at some point in their lives. By age 50, at least 80 percent of women will have acquired genital HPV infection. About 6.2 million Americans get a new genital HPV infection each year.”

 

[CatholicSam]

astegallrnc:

Oh now, that is not nice to refer to the lovely CDC research I linked as ugly. You made it further than I… I only read the abstact.

Oh, my apologies! Did I say “ugly”? I meant “beautifully poetically written”

 

[Princess_Abby]

vluvski:

Being exposed is not the same as being infected, unless I’m confused. It would be great if someone could post the estimated rate of infection!

I can only speak for myself, but I’m not in favor of doing nothing to stop it. I don’t think I need to repost my previous rant.

Being exposed may or may not lead to infection. Symptoms do not just “appear” the next day and may lie dormant for quite some time. As in, after two people are married. I don’t want my daughter to find herself in that position.

As for promoting chastity, obviously that is the number one thing to do. But creating a revolution of abstinence takes time. I don’t think passing out condoms is the right idea and nor do I buy the whole “they’ll just have sex anyway, so let’s provide them with the means to do it slightly more safely.” My point has nothing to do with any of those arguments, it’s merely to keep my daughter safe from the bad choices of OTHER people whom she might consider marrying someday if they happen to end up as good Catholics.

 

[Princess_Abby]

astegallrnc:

According to the CDC
“Approximately 20 million people are currently infected with HPV. At least 50 percent of sexually active men and women acquire genital HPV infection at some point in their lives. By age 50, at least 80 percent of women will have acquired genital HPV infection. About 6.2 million Americans get a new genital HPV infection each year.”

That is a staggering reality.

 

[leaner]

ElizabethAnne:

Maybe you know this already, but HPV is the most common cause of cervical cancer. Well over 90% of cervical cancer cases are caused by HPV. A woman has almost no chance of getting cervical cancer if she remains abstinent before marriage.

Got news forya…even those of us who were “good” have married those who “weren’t good” – since repented, and chosen a new path, but have skeletons in their sexual closet (mine happen to be located in a different closet, but that’s not for this thread…lol). Does this mean it’s my fault b/c I married a non-virgin? Does this mean I didn’t abstain before marriage? Nope, and nope. I am still vulnerable, and still worry about cervical cancer from HPV every day. But thanks for the “hindsight” about my pre-marriage life…

That being said, if I trusted the vaccine was “safe” enough to outweigh the risks I would have my daughter vaccinated but not “informed” of why/what it was. She can still be raised chaste, and virtuous, but cervical cancer from HPV will be one worry off the table…now, prove to me it’s safe…(LOL) – good luck on that one!

 

[mumto5]

Well, having read that over 50% of ten year old girls were positive for exposure to HPV (not from sexual abuse) and sorry, can’t remember the source any more, it may be too late anyway.

 

[leaner]

Princess_Abby:

Regardless of how much I will promote chastity with my daughter, I’m not going to count on her having virginal men as options for a potential husband. In a little less than eleven years, she will be ten years old and more information might be available about potential side effects, etc. If it happens to be considered safe still, I will almost definitely vaccinate her against this very prevalent STD. She may very well fall in love with a man someday who has repented from a sinful lifestyle but still suffers from remants of it–such as HPV.

.

That’s me – and I sure wish I had some sort of shot back then…wouldn’t even have needed to know about it.

 

[Ryniev]

Yes, I would have my daughter get it, She is high risk. I’ve had pre-cervical cancer in my late 20’s and my mother has cervical cancer that has spread into her vagina and has a poor prognosis. I won’t encourage my daughter to have pre-marital sex but on the off chance she is raped, date-raped or just goes off the deep end, she doesn’t deserve to go through what my mother is going through if it can be prevented.

 

[astegallrnc]

CatholicSam:

Oh, my apologies! Did I say “ugly”? I meant “beautifully poetically written”

Yep, that is how I read it too.

I think if the vaccine is safe I would vaccinate my DD (I’d want my DS vaccinated too). Princess Abby is right about the staggering statistics. Here is a link to information from the CDC on genital HPV
cdc.gov/std/hpv/default.htm

 

[astegallrnc]

Ryniev:

Yes, I would have my daughter get it, She is high risk. I’ve had pre-cervical cancer in my late 20’s and my mother has cervical cancer that has spread into her vagina and has a poor prognosis. I won’t encourage my daughter to have pre-marital sex but on the off chance she is raped, date-raped or just goes off the deep end, she doesn’t deserve to go through what my mother is going through if it can be prevented.

I am sorry about your mother.

 

[Siena]

leaner:

That being said, if I trusted the vaccine was “safe” enough to outweigh the risks I would have my daughter vaccinated but not “informed” of why/what it was. She can still be raised chaste, and virtuous, but cervical cancer from HPV will be one worry off the table…now, prove to me it’s safe…(LOL) – good luck on that one!

I also agree with Abby @ not needing to worry about her future spouse.
But Leaner- you have the 50 million dollar question. Because of that - my dds, 9 and 5 will NOT have this. I need at least 10 years of use before I will even THINK about a vaccine.

(This includes the current fad vaccine- Chicken pox. Although it seems it will now be mandatory for my youngest to go to school. I keep hoping they will catch it from SOMEWHERE in the next 4 or 5 yrs., otherwise I will need to reconsider.)

 

[ElizabethAnne]

leaner:

Got news forya…even those of us who were “good” have married those who “weren’t good” – since repented, and chosen a new path, but have skeletons in their sexual closet (mine happen to be located in a different closet, but that’s not for this thread…lol). Does this mean it’s my fault b/c I married a non-virgin? Does this mean I didn’t abstain before marriage? Nope, and nope. I am still vulnerable, and still worry about cervical cancer from HPV every day. But thanks for the “hindsight” about my pre-marriage life…

That being said, if I trusted the vaccine was “safe” enough to outweigh the risks I would have my daughter vaccinated but not “informed” of why/what it was. She can still be raised chaste, and virtuous, but cervical cancer from HPV will be one worry off the table…now, prove to me it’s safe…(LOL) – good luck on that one!

I was assuming that a woman who has not had sex outside of marriage could ask her fiance to get himself tested for HPV. If I remember correctly, HPV is bacterial, not viral, disease and is not permanent. One would think the fiance would no longer have it even if he had previously contracted the disease.

I was not trying to provide “hindsight about my pre-marriage life” and don’t understand why you took my post as a personal affront to you.

God bless.