Dear Editor,

I have been reading with interest the government’s decision to implement the gardasil vaccine for HPV.  I also read a letter stating that it‘s not statistically necessary and might actually be harmful. Both of these opinions are ill advised and ignorant. As an Ob/Gyn for more than ten years I have found the vaccine to be both safe and effective.  It should never be imposed on a patient. Vaccination should be a choice of the patient and her family.  It does protect against 70 per cent of cervical cancer as well as genital warts.  The government should never make a family have their child vaccinated for this without their express consent.  HPV has also been implicated in the recent rise in oral and anal cancers in the population. Anyone who engages in sexual contact even if it is just genital contact without intercourse, can be exposed to HPV.

It is important to counsel girls and women about the vaccine. Having given it to hundreds of women and girls over the past 6 years, I’ve had no side effects other than pain at the vaccination site.  To state as a MPH did the other day that the prevalence of cervical dysplasia and cancers is low in Guyana is incorrect.

Where did her statistics come from and what about the other sequellae from HPV?  In the non-industrialized world cervical cancer and its consequences are far worse than in countries where women are screened annually.  This vaccine is an important part of women’s health.  It should be the choice of the patient and her family or partners.  It should not be imposed by a government that chooses to build cricket stadiums rather than clinics.  But most certainly, it should be available.

Yours faithfully,
Sabriya B Ishoof MD
Board Certified OB/GYN
Miami, Florida
(Born Georgetown, Guyana, 1973)