"HPV Vaccine: Medical Breakthroughs and Social Ramifications"

On March 23^rd, 2007, The Birmingham Freethought Society will host a public lecture about the recent developments on the HPV vaccine. The issues surrounding this vaccine are not limited to scientific research, but it has far reaching impacts on the social and political spectrum.

The event is at 6:30 PM on Friday, March 23^rd at the HUC Alumni Auditorium. There would be a presentation by three of our panelists, Sharmila Makhija, M.D., and Thomas R. Broker, Ph.D., and Cindy Cuellar, who is a Theology graduate from St. Mary's University - followed by questions from the audience. Dr. Makhija and Dr. Broker, have worked extensively in the development and clinical trials of HPV vaccine, while Cindy Cuellar would be covering the social and ethical aspects of the said vaccine.

About the Speakers:

 

• Thomas R. Broker, Ph.D., Professor
  Research Interests: Human Papillomavirus Gene Expression, Replication, and Pathogenesis
   
• Sharmila K. Makhija, M.D.
  Diseases Treated/Clinical Interests:Ovarian cancer, antiangiogenesis gene therapy, cervical cancer, chemoprevention, GYN cancers and chemoresistance in ovarian cancer.
   
• Cindy Cuellar
  Cindy Cuellar got her graduate degree in Theology at the University of St.Mary, with concentration in social-moral issue and bioethics.

This event is open to public.

HPV Vaccine Panel Discussion
March 23^rd, Friday, at 6:30 PM
UAB Alumni Auditorium

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Event summary

(Courtesy Ted G.)

I think all three speakers made some good points. Actually, at one point during Cindy's talk I was convinced by her position. I thought, "let's just be thankful we have the HPV vaccine and move gradually on it, as we monitor its effectiveness."

But by the end I was convinced by Shamila and Thomas that making it mandatory is a better idea. I really appreciated their candor: they admitted that we don't know how long the Gardisil vaccine is effective (Shamila) and that vaccines can even be fatal in some cases (Thomas). But I think Shamila is probably right that if you don't make a vaccination program mandatory, it will not be implemented.

I thought of this angle. One of the awful things is how expensive this vaccine is. I think if it was made mandatory, with an "opt out" rather than an "opt in" available, it would gradually work to reduce the price. Admittedly this may mean Merck will get an obscenely high profit for awhile, but if it's mandatory, other pharmaceutical companies will have a very strong incentive to make competing vaccines. And as they are successful, this will drive down the price of Gardasil.

Dr. Sharmila Makhija (center) with Jon Paolone and Dr. Curiel

(From L to R): Dr. Thomas Broker, Cindy Cuellar, Dr. Sharmila Makhija and Dr. David Curiel.