US approves cervical cancer drug The US has licensed the first vaccine against cervical cancer, which kills at least 290,000 women worldwide a year. The new drug Gardasil - manufactured by Merck & Co. - is designed to be given to girls and women between the ages of nine and 26. It works by combatting the human papillomavirus (HPV). "This vaccine is a significant advance in the protection of women's health," said Andrew von Eschenbach, acting Food and Drug Administration commissioner. A course of treatment over six months is expected to cost about $360 (£195). But conservative groups in the US argue that treating young girls before they become sexually active will encourage promiscuity. 'Nearly 100% effective' The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Gardasil after a six-month clinical testing programme, involving 21,000 women around the world. The trials showed that Gardasil was "nearly 100% effective" in preventing HPV, which causes genital warts that can lead to cancer, the FDA said. It said the new drug was effective against four key types of HPV. Three injections will cost $360, with Merck saying the vaccine would be available within weeks. "Fortunately, we can now include the worst types of HPV and most cervical cancer in the list of diseases that no-one need suffer or die from ever again," said Alex Azar, Deputy US Health and Human Services Secretary. HPV infections are believed to cause at least 70% of cervical cancer - the second most common cancer among women worldwide after breast cancer. Most death occur in developing countries, where early screening is not as developed as in wealthy nations. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5062422.stm
I am interested to see how much cervical cancer this vaccine prevents. The drug companies use their own special form of bogus math to calculate the efficacy of many drugs. For example, Lipitor is pretty useless and dangerous to boot. See: http://www.lewrockwell.com/sardi/sardi54.html for a description of the bad science behind many drugs.