U.S. Advisory Panel rejects Gardasil for males
POSTED October 22, 2009 - 10:03 | POSTED BY Kangna Agarwal
Last edited by Harpreet Bhagrath on October 22, 2009 - 12:48
Although the committee has permitted the individual doctors to administer the vaccine at their discretion to males aged between 9 and 26, they are not expected to offer it.
Surprisingly, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had approved the vaccine for use in boys and men aged 9 to 26 last week.
Many health advocates argue that vaccinating young men could lower the incidence of human papillomavirus (HPV) cancers in both the sexes since males transmit the virus to the females.
But, the present expert recommendation reasons that cost of immunizing the boys could overweigh health benefits as compared to females.
Gardasil less cost-effective among males
To compare the health benefits and cost effectiveness of the vaccination among males and females, a team from the Harvard School of Public Health compared a girls-only immunization programme with a co-ed vaccination programme.
The findings of the study showed that routine vaccination of 12-year-old girls proved cost effective vis-à-vis the health benefits at less than $50,000 per added year of quality life.
On the other hand, when boys were also included in the vaccination programme, it increased the cost-effectiveness ratio to more than $100,000 per added year of quality life.
The researchers explained that cost effectiveness of the vaccine meant a gain of added years to one’s life by the getting the vaccine.
They suggested that a vaccination is considered to be of good value if its cost-effectiveness ratio varies from $50,000 to $100,000 per added year of quality life.
"This study found that while vaccine coverage and efficacy are high in girls, including boys in an HPV vaccination program generally exceeds what the U.S. typically considers good value for money," said lead researcher Jane Kim, an assistant professor of Center of Health Decision Science, Boston.
Panel approves second HPV vaccine for females
In yet another vote, the panel of independent medical experts from the Advisory Committee has approved the use of a second HPV vaccine, GlaxoSmithKline's Cervarix, for use in females to prevent the risk of cervical cancer.
The first one was Gardasil, manufactured by Merck & Co's, manufacturer and distributor of pharmaceuticals in U.S.
The FDA had also approved Cervarix for use in girls and women aged between 10 to 26 last week.
According to health experts, Gardasil provides protection against four strains of the HPV accounting for 70 percent of cervical cancers and 90 percent of genital warts--highly contagious sexually transmitted infection.
