The human papillomavirus (HPV) is a risk factor for cervical cancer, and there has been an advertising campaign lately to vaccinate young women for HPV. An editorial in the Sept. 13, 2007 New England Journal of Medicine points out some of the shortcomings of efforts to get young women vaccinated with Gardasil. The editorial pointed out that the vaccine is effective in women who had not been exposed to HPV, but is only about 17% effective in women who have been exposed to the virus.

The editorial says that not only is the vaccine not as effective as publicity suggests, but it also is not completely safe. FDA documents reveal over 1,600 adverse reactions to the vaccine. In the documents, 42 pregnant women were vaccinated and 18 of them had adverse effects including miscarriage and fetal abnormalities.