What was designed to be a public health information forum about the HPV vaccine turned into an emotional scene as self-described “victims” of the vaccine spoke out about serious side effects linked to the drug. Perhaps the most well known of these vaccines, which are promoted as protection against the human papillomavirus (HPV), is Gardasil, manufactured by Merck. HPV, which is transmitted sexually,  is linked to the development of cervical cancer and, more recently, cancers of the throat and anus.

The public forum was held in an Indianapolis community, sponsored by the Indiana Immunization Coalition. It featured among its panelists scientist Darron Brown, who is one of the creators of the HPV vaccine. He is a researcher at UI Health. He and other panelists were put on the spot when parents began peppering them with questions about the vaccine’s safety.

WISH TV8 reporter Deanna Dewberry, who attended the forum as part of her ongoing investigation about the HPV vaccine, said  the scene became more emotionally charged as some parents in the audience began to share stories about serious side effects suffered by their children, which they believed were directly related the Gardasil shots. Teenage girls cried as their parents shared information about the symptoms they reportedly suffer after receiving the vaccine.

Brown and other panelists, which included physicians and public health department representatives, argued such side effects have not been conclusively proven as resulting from the vaccine.

Since its approval by the FDA and introduction to the market in 2006, Gardasil has been linked to more than 20,000 reports of adverse side effects, including serious problems such as seizures, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis and Guilliane Barre syndrome. There have been nearly 100 deaths reported among girls who received the Gardsail vaccine. At the end of 2011, the vaccine’s reach was expanded when it was approved for use in boys and young men.

Dr. Virginia Caine, director of the Marion County Public Health Department, assured parents that her office would follow up on reports of side effects linked to Gardasil.

Watch the News Report:

HPV vaccine forum turns emotional: wishtv.com

Source: WISH TV8

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