Should My Young Daughter Get the HPV Vaccination?
Another concern that some have expressed about Gardasil is that it will lull young women into a false sense of security. Medicine has come a long way towards reducing the death toll of cervical cancer. Gardasil is another step in this same happy direction. However, Gardasil does not prevent 100% of all cases of cervical cancer, since cervical cancer is not always caused by the strains of HPV prevented by the vaccine. It is therefore vital that young women who have received the vaccine continue to see their gynecologist for PAP screenings, so that cervical cancer will be detected in its early stages. When the disease is detected early, the five-year survival rate for cervical cancer is now 90% in America (CDC). No one should consider herself safe from cervical cancer because she has received the Gardasil vaccination. However, as long as you make it clear to your daughter that she must continue to be concerned about developing cervical cancer -- and therefore must continue to see her gynecologist regularly -- Gardasil is one way to reduce her risk by 70%.
8 Printable Thank-You Cards for Teachers
