Gardasil - It has Risks, Dangers, Side Effects

Truthiness in Advertising - Gardasil - It has Risks, Dangers, Side Effects

Below is the script of a TV ad for Gardasil, a vaccine for the human papillomavirus ( HPV) which may cause cervical cancer. These ads have been widely broadcast and feature hip young skateboarding and drum-playing girls just wanting to be “one less.” The Gardasil ad script is in italic type. My version of the truth, as I think it should be voiced by Merck, the manufacturer, is in normal type.

Each year in the U.S., thousands of women learn they have cervical cancer.

We admit, “thousands” is a relative term. Not many women in developed countries get cervical cancer, and even fewer die from it. In the U.S., about 12,000 women a year get cervical cancer, and less than 4,000 of them die from it. The majority of women who die from cervical cancer are drug addicts and/or prostitutes who are in poor health and don’t get regular pap smears. Many more women die of cervical cancer in underdeveloped countries, but since they’re not going to pay $300 for a vaccine, we’re focusing our efforts on the U.S.

I could be one less. One less statistic. One less.

Because now there’s Gardasil. The only vaccine that may help protect you from 4 types of human papillomavirus [HPV] that may cause 70% of cervical cancer.

Notice we said “may help.” Not “will help.” That’s because Gardasil only affects 4 out of 18 types of HPV, and that 70% statistic is debatable, which is why we again used the word “may.”