ok, i used to post on this board a lot but i havent been back in a while.... well i'm back. i tried getting over my x-girlfriend (who has GW) and tried to date other people. every other girl sucks and is so uninteresting to me. i cant get my x out of my head!!!

bottom line, i want gardasil. i know its not available for men yet, but i dont care. where can i get it? seriously, i'm over worrying about whether its been approved or side effects. point me in the direction of a back street doctor who can get his hands on it and i'll have him inject me. and how much do you think it would cost for the 3 vaccinations?

thanks a lot

Acutally, Gardasil HAS been approved for males! In October the FDA licensed Gardasil for use with males age 9-26, and if you're outside of that range you can still talk with a health care provider to see if they'll provide it for you.

We don't have referrals to specific clinics for this, but it shouldn't be too hard to track down.

Hope this helps.

Best,
Fredo

FDA Rules on Cervical Cancer Vaccines
Agency approves GSK’s jab for use in the U.S.; expands Merck vaccine’s indication to include boys

On October 16, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced two major rulings with HPV/cervical cancer vaccines, approving GlaxoSmithKline’s cervical cancer vaccine, Cervarix®, for use in the U.S. with females ages 10-25 and green-lighting use of Merck’s Gardasil® with boys.

The approval of Cervarix brings another cervical cancer vaccine to the market; Gardasil was the first cervical cancer vaccine licensed in the U.S., approved in 2006 for use with girls and young women. In clinical studies both vaccines were highly effective in blocking persistent infections and diseases associated with HPV types 16 and 18, the viral types responsible for about 70% of cervical cancers. The Merck vaccine also protects against HPV types 6 and 11, the “low risk” viral types found with about 90% of genital warts.

In late September the FDA said it would delay it’s decision on Cervarix, saying it wanted more time to fully review the product. The announcement came only a day after a 14-year old girl in the U.K. died shortly after receiving the vaccine. GSK says the postponement was not connected to the death, a view backed by public health officials in the U.K. who say the girl’s death was due to a malignant chest tumor discovered during the autopsy. The FDA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say Cervarix and Gardasil both have excellent safety profiles.

ASHA president and CEO Lynn B. Barclay says expanding HPV vaccines to include boys is an important move for public health and sends positive messages. “If HPV vaccines are in fact approved for males, this tells young men that we value their health, and promotes gender equity by making prevention of HPV diseases a shared responsibility.” Currently, the Merck vaccine is licensed for use with females ages 9-26, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend routine vaccination with Gardasil for girls ages 11-12, with catch-up vaccination for females ages 13-26.

As for having a second vaccine on the market, ASHA vice-president for health policy Deborah Arrindell says competition will likely bring several benefits. Arrindell said “the availability of two vaccines will promote competition in the marketplace, and hopefully will create an incentive for researchers to conduct further evaluation to better understand how each vaccine works, and how they may differ.”

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ASHA Moderator

Fredo, I just read your post and have more questions. I asked my doctor before about whether or not I should get the shot if it becomes approved for men. He said well you've already got genital warts and its not been shown to really help once you've been exposed. So I asked him if he would get it regardless and he said yes. With your knowledge at ASHA, have you heard that it helps with treatment/cure/helping the bodies immune system.

Hi Colt,

No, the current vaccines don't treat or help with existing HPV and any related warts, but they can protect you if you're exposed to some other HPV types that you don't already have. I've never heard they'll boost the immune system in terms of dealing with current HPV infections, though.
There are vaccines in development that would ideally be able to treat existing infections and warts, but nothing is near coming to market just yet.

Wish I had more to tell you!

Best,
Fredo

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ASHA Moderator

wow, i'm extremely taken back by this.... i didnt think they would approve it for years. ok, so before i do anything i like to get the facts about it. fredo maybe you could answer a few questions about gardasil for men. maybe this post could be a source of answers for more men on this site and possibly clear up any rumors or confusion about gardasil for men

1. What do you think are the chances of getting GBS after recieving the gardasil vaccination? "Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) has also been reported in individuals following vaccination with Gardasil" (or any other side effect that i've read about like pancreatitis, seizures, INFERTILITY, Bell's palsy, etc.... infertility is a big one for me)

2. "Gardasil was nearly 90 percent effective in preventing genital warts caused by infection with HPV types 6 and 11" does that mean theres still a 10% chance i can get it even after being vaccinated? cuz i will be knowingly sleeping with someone who has GW. i dont sleep around, i am getting this because i love someone who definitely has it.

3. Is the gardasil for women the same exact gardasil for men? if yes, why did it take so long to be released for males?

4. theres a health clinic two blocks from my house, do u think i can go in there and talk with someone about the vaccination without being charged money (i dont have health insurance). Is there places/clinics that i can go to, to get gardasil for free if i can prove that i make less than a certain amount of money per year?

5. is there anything that i cant be doing or diagnosed with in order to get gardasil? something that i wouldnt think of. (example: you shouldnt drink alcohol while taking antibiotics.... that obviously doesnt apply to gardasil, but i was just showing you an example of the type of question i'm asking)

thank you so much fredo, you've helped me out a lot over the past year

1. What do you think are the chances of getting GBS after recieving the gardasil vaccination? "Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) has also been reported in individuals following vaccination with Gardasil" (or any other side effect that i've read about like pancreatitis, seizures, INFERTILITY, Bell's palsy, etc.... infertility is a big one for me)

Oh, that whole infertility thing came up here a couple of years ago, and is probably best regarded as nonsense, to be blunt.

It was based on the fact the Merck vaccine contains polysorbate 80, whch has been linked with infertility in some mice studies. However, there is no research linking polysorbate 80 with infertility in humans and the vaccine is considered to be safe in this regard.

Some also went off on the fact the vaccine contains sodium borate (boric acid), which has appropriate medical uses, and is ROUTINELY used by healthcare providers to treat vaginal infections such as bacterial vaginosis or trichomoniasis (don't try and self treat, though. See your healthcare provider first). It is even sometimes used as an antiseptic for minor cuts!

As for GBS, the rates of GBS seen in the vaccine groups are lower than what you'd expect to find at random in the general population.

2. "Gardasil was nearly 90 percent effective in preventing genital warts caused by infection with HPV types 6 and 11" does that mean theres still a 10% chance i can get it even after being vaccinated? cuz i will be knowingly sleeping with someone who has GW. i dont sleep around, i am getting this because i love someone who definitely has it.

It's a little less effective in men, perhaps, but still pretty good.

3. Is the gardasil for women the same exact gardasil for men? if yes, why did it take so long to be released for males?

Yep, and it took longer because the first studies focused on women. We didn't have saftey or effectiveness data with men until much later, so there wasn't enough on which to base an FDA decision.

4. theres a health clinic two blocks from my house, do u think i can go in there and talk with someone about the vaccination without being charged money (i dont have health insurance). Is there places/clinics that i can go to, to get gardasil for free if i can prove that i make less than a certain amount of money per year?

Call the health clinic and see what they're willing to do, and if there's a cost (and how much that might be).

5. is there anything that i cant be doing or diagnosed with in order to get gardasil? something that i wouldnt think of. (example: you shouldnt drink alcohol while taking antibiotics.... that obviously doesnt apply to gardasil, but i was just showing you an example of the type of question i'm asking)

I'm not aware of any restrictions in this regard.

Hope this helps!
Fredo

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ASHA Moderator

so Fredo,

give me your honest opinion. should i go ahead and get gardasil?

i mean honestly, if i do, her and i will be having sex, and its going to be unprotected. we're not worried about any std's besides genital warts. her and i have been tested and she has gotten the gardasil vaccine since getting GW. this 10% thing scares me but shes hasnt had an outbreak in quite a while and last time she was at the gyno they checked and said she was cleared, but i believe they just meant that she currently has no warts or symptoms.

and do you think i should worry about the whole GBS? because a lot of people get its gardasil every day without side effects.

thank you more than you know

and theoretically does that mean that out of 100 males exposed to HPV types 6 or 11 that 10 of them will mostly likely get it?

Hi HTL,

I'm afraid I can't say if you should or shouldn't have the vaccine, but it's certainly worth bringing your worries to a health care provider to see what they think. I can't remember this part of your history, but if you've already been sexually active with a partner who has a current HPV diagnosis, then it's likely the two of you share it. The vaccine can still be of value to someone who has/may have HPV, though.

The recommendations re: men with HPV vaccine aren't as strongly worded as with women, because men have health issues related to the virus even less often than females, but again, it's worth a chat especially if you're concerned and feel like this would make you feel more comfortable.

Best always,
Fredo

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ASHA Moderator

dear Fredo,

so i went to the health clinic at my university and tried to talk to someone about the gardasil vaccine and me getting it as a male. unfortunately no one seemed to be able to answer many questions about it. at first they werent even aware that it was approved for males... i had to tell them that. then when i asked them questions they just kept referring to the pamphlet about HPV. and i asked them about some side effects and again, the pamphlet. i just want to sit down and talk to someone that knows what they're talking about (i guess thats why i'm always writing you). so needless to say, i didnt get much help. i dont have health insurance so i think my school clinic will be my best bet. it cost $135 per shot, which is expensive but i dont know what else i could do.

i writing you to ask, the gardasil they would give me is the same gardasil that they give women so it wouldnt matter much whether they knew anything about it or not? pretty much all they have to do is inject me with right stuff at the correct times and it'll be ok, right?

thank you

Right, it would be the same vaccine, not a male-specific version.

http://www.merck.com/product/usa/pi_cir ... sil_pi.pdf will take you to a PDF of the prescribing information; section 1.2 covers use of the vaccine in males.

Best,
Fredo

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ASHA Moderator

dear Fredo,

so i was gonna go get my gardasil shot two day ago and the day before i decided to call my mom and ask her if i've ever been allergic to anything (just in case theres something thats in gardasil that i'm allergic to) and she tells me that as a child i had a bad reaction to a DTP shot. so i go online and google "gardasil, DTP shot, adverse reaction" not much came up in that respect but then i noticed a posting about gardasil and hairloss

so then i googled "gardasil, hairloss" and dozens of results came up with people talking about how their daughters were experiencing hairloss after recieving the gardasil vaccine. thats something that worries me, i'm already worried about losing my hair as a young male. but is this something thats a common side effect of gardasil... and am i (as a male) more prone to this side effect because of male pattern baldness?

thank you

this isn't likely to happen with the gardasil vaccines. It's really not a reason to get the vaccination if you are interested in it. It's not even listed in the post marketing issues section of the prescribing info.

betsy

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ASHA Moderator

Ditto, never heard anything about that. Thanks Betsy!

Fredo

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ASHA Moderator

whenever i Google "gardasil hair loss" there are literally dozens of pages of results with people talking having hair loss after receiving the gardasil shot. 39 pages to be exact. and that's pages with 10 articles per page. when you type in "gardasil" and then begin to type the word hair with just the "h", gardasil hair loss comes up as a suggestion for a search. why would so many people be saying this if there is no truth behind it. i want to get the shot, i'm just concerned about my health.

thank you