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monkeypox vaccine effectiveness

Monkeypox vaccine effectiveness — we don’t know much

There’s a lot of information on various news sites about the effectiveness of the monkeypox vaccine. They often claim it’s 80% or higher. Unfortunately, I accepted those numbers as a “scientific fact,” so I decided to dig into what supported the claims of the effectiveness of the monkeypox vaccine. I was surprised by what I found.

I think when something like monkeypox, or the novel coronavirus two years ago, we jump on early data without analyzing it properly. And that’s where we stand with the monkeypox vaccine — exactly how safe and effective is it?

I’m not going into the safety of the vaccine at thiscause I don’t have good data to give you. In fact, I don’t have really good data to give you about the vaccine’s effectiveness, and that’s my point.

So, let’s take a look at the evidence that has been published on the effectiveness of the monkeypox vaccine.

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HPV vaccine anecdotes – not the basis of real science

Anecdotes are a fundamental part of the anti-vaccine propaganda machine. We have a tendency to overstate the importance of anecdotes, because they usually have an emotional appeal to them. Anecdotes are not data, not even close. At best, they are observations, but they give no indication of temporal correlation, let alone causality.

HPV vaccine anecdotes have become part of the discourse about Gardasil and other HPV vaccines. It has become  full-time job just to debunk the myths that arise from a handful of anecdotes.

I have written on a number of articles about the HPV cancer-prevention vaccines, Gardasil, Cervarix and Silgard. These vaccines prevent infection by up to 9 different types of genital and oral human papillomavirus (HPV), the most common sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the USA.

The virus is generally transmitted from personal contact during vaginal, anal or oral sex. It is very easy to transmit, and according to the CDC, roughly 79 million Americans are infected with HPV–approximately 14 million Americans contract HPV every year.

HPV is believed to cause nearly 5% of all new cancers across the world, making it almost as dangerous with regards to cancer as tobacco. Most individuals don’t even know they have the infection until the onset of cancer. And about 27,000 HPV-related cancers are diagnosed in the USA every year.

There is  a robust body of evidence supporting the fact that HPV vaccines are highly effective in preventing HPV infection. There are also several large studies (also, here and here) that strongly support the high degree of safety of the HPV vaccine.

Recently, the European Medicines Agency (EMA, European Union’s version of the US FDA) had started a review of human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccines “to further clarify aspects of their safety profile,” although the agency also points out that this review “does not question that the benefits of HPV vaccines outweigh their risks.”

The outcome? The EMA found that the HPV vaccine was safe.

Read More »HPV vaccine anecdotes – not the basis of real science

HPV vaccine prevents cancer in men – good news

The HPV vaccine prevents cancer – this is not surprising information, because the wealth of evidence supporting the safety and effectiveness of the HPV vaccine is approaching unassailable. Of course, many people make claims about various cures for and prevention of cancer on the internet, but seriously there are just a handful of ways to prevent cancer. And one of them is getting the HPV vaccine.

Most of the early data was in reduction of cancer rates, especially for cervical cancer, in women. Part of this bias was because the HPV vaccine was originally just indicated for girls and young women. But more recently, the vaccine was approved in most areas of the world to be used with boys and young men.

However, a new study is out that gives us more evidence that the vaccine will prevent cancer in men. And that’s more good news if you’re looking for an effective way to prevent some cancers.

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Gardasil prevents cancer – more evidence

There are lots of quacks out on the internet that make all kinds of nonsense claims about how to prevent cancer. Eat blueberries. Eat kale. Eat GMO-free, organic blueberry kale soy sherbet.

I’ll bet there are thousands of claims made by charlatans to prevent cancer. But really, there are just a handful of ways to actually prevent cancer. Avoid tobacco smoke. Avoid the sun. Keep a healthy low weight. Avoid alcohol.

And get the HPV vaccine, known as Gardasil. Yes, Gardasil prevents cancer (actually, there are two, the other being the hepatitis B vaccine, but we’ll get to that in another article).

Now, there is even more evidence, from a huge research study, that supports the fact that Gardasil prevents cancer in young women.

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HPV vaccine prevents cancer and cuts medical costs

Genital and oral human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the USA. There are more than 40 HPV sub-types that can infect the genital areas of males and females. Additionally, some HPV types, typically subtypes 16 and 18, can also infect the mouth and throat. HPV is generally transmitted from personal contact during vaginal, anal or oral sex. (For further information, please see my review of HPV vaccines.)

HPV is believed to cause nearly 5% of all new cancers across the world, making it almost as dangerous as tobacco. According to the CDC, roughly 79 million Americans are infected with HPV–approximately 14 million Americans contract HPV every year. Most individuals don’t even know they have the infection until the onset of cancer. About 27,000 HPV-related cancers are diagnosed in the USA every year.Read More »HPV vaccine prevents cancer and cuts medical costs

Sexually transmitted infections after HPV vaccination of young women

HPV quadrivalent cancer preventing vaccine, known as Gardasil (or Silgard in Europe), can reduce the risk of several types of cancer by blocking sexually transmitted (along with a few other pathways) infection by human papillomavirus (HPV). There are more than 40 HPV sub-types that can infect the genital areas of males and females. Additionally, some HPV types can also infect the mouth and throat. HPV is generally transmitted from personal contact during vaginal, anal or oral sex. About one-quarter of those sub-types are implicated in a number of genital, anal and oral cancers.

In a broad review of all of the published clinical research involving HPV vaccines, there is a clear scientific and medical consensus that HPV vaccines are extraordinarily safe, they quickly reduce HPV infection rates in populations of adolescents and young adults, and by reducing HPV infection rate, we will eventually have a real and statistically significant reduction in the risks of many types of cancer.

And as I’ve said many times, there are just a handful of methods, supported by real scientific evidence, to reduce the risk of cancer–quit smoking, lose weight to be clinical “skinny”, stay out of the sun, remove radon gas from your house, and get the HPV vaccine. No, eating a non-GMO, organic blueberry-kale shake will absolutely have NO effect on your risk of getting cancer, unless you find that so disgusting that you lose substantial weight.Read More »Sexually transmitted infections after HPV vaccination of young women

HPV incidence

Why we vaccinate – reduction in HPV incidence in UK

The HPV quadrivalent vaccine, also known as Gardasil (or Silgard in Europe) prevents infection by the human papillomavirus, a sexually transmitted disease. The vaccine specifically targets subtypes 16 and 18, that cause not only approximately 70% of cervical cancers, but also they cause most HPV-induced anal (95%… Read More »Why we vaccinate – reduction in HPV incidence in UK