The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recently recommended all young teen girls undergo a costly and needless three-stage vaccine regimen to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV), the most common cause of cervical cancer.
Now, some health "experts" want to include young boys in that HPV vaccine roundup too. In fact, a medical journal editorial claims the "best use" of the vaccine may include inoculating all men and women in addition to young teens, despite individual risk factors.
What really made my blood boil was a horrible comment in the editorial about the "real" need for this latest vaccine: We need to move toward a paradigm where this is a universal vaccine.
If the early estimates commit the federal government to a $2 billion price tag to pay for and immunize as many as 7 million girls alone, imagine the demand and payout for that totally unnecessary, useless vaccine should the CDC agree young boys and adults be included.
That's sure to be a sweet payoff for Merck, on the heels of its HPV vaccine Gardasil approved for use by the FDA in June. Still, the New Jersey drugmaker will need all the cash it can generate to pay for all the lawsuits tied to Vioxx and Fosamax.