Getting Ready to Fight

Women are special. They're so special in fact that they have a set of doctors whose specialization is based solely on what makes them women, our OB-GYNE. I tried searching for their counterparts for the male population but the closest I got to is a list of specialist and doctors who are involved in the treatment of prostate cancer.

I went to my OB-GYNE this morning to have myself checked for the nth time regarding my PCOS. After my TVS I went on to ask about the HPV vaccine which I've been hearing about since early 2009. A good friend of mine from college lost his mom last May of 2009 to cervical cancer and had adamantly reminded me when I attended the wake to get vaccinated.

My OB-GYNE was kind enough to explain to me what HPV is and how it the vaccine would protect me from the most common strains that causes cancer. She even gave me a leaflet with the most common FAQs that I needed to know and understand which I read on my way home and happily handed to my mom once I got home.

Here's a link from National Cancer Institute with a list of recommended sites for reading:

On June 8, 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of a new vaccine to prevent infection from four types of the human papillomavirus (HPV). Two of the HPV types targeted by the vaccine (HPV-16 and HPV-18) are responsible for about 70 percent of the cases of cervical cancer worldwide. The other two HPV types (HPV-6 and HPV-11) cause approximately 90 percent of the cases of genital warts. The vaccine, made by Merck & Co., Inc., is based on laboratory research and technology developed at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). NCI played a pivotal role in what holds promise to be a major public health success story. NCI continues to conduct research on HPV and cervical cancer.

Pinays, the HPV vaccine is very much available in the Philippines as well and is recommended for women aged 9 to 50. There are 2 brands on the market now, one is Cervarix and another is Gardasil. Cervarix will protect you from 2 of the most common strains of the HPV virus which are found on 70% of women with cervical cancer while Gardasil will protect you from 4 of the most common strain including genital warts. Both needs to be administered thrice. As per my OB-GYNE, as of the moment, Cervarix cost around P2,500 per shot while Gardasil cost at P4,500 per shot.

I'm personally leaning towards Gardasil. I'm thinking of protecting myself so why not take the extra mile?  After all, there are about 30 known strains and at most we can only get vaccinated against 4, so far. There's no excuse to be at risk when you're informed.