2eclipse: (brainy chic)
2eclipse ([personal profile] 2eclipse) wrote2006-06-13 09:19 pm

good news

for those of you with breasts! or at least a cervix.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5062422.stm

[identity profile] sooper.livejournal.com 2006-06-14 10:41 am (UTC)(link)
The only thing I don't get is, why doesn't it suggest that men have this done too? Men carry HPV, too, and while they can't get cervical cancer, they can pass it on to someone who can. It just seems like a double standard. But yay for the drug being approved, I know it had opposition from people who care more about other people's sex lives than whether people die of cancer.

the truth is that i don't know...

[identity profile] 2eclipse.livejournal.com 2006-06-14 03:49 pm (UTC)(link)
but here is my theory.
often stuff that has to do with cervical cancer in women has to do with estrogen. it is unhealthy for men to have too much estrogen, it suppresses their testosterone and makes them less fertile and manly. it is even unhealthy for gay men, who were recently proven to have higher levels of estrogen than straight men do.
my guess is that there are hormonal reasons why this vaccine is not reccommended for men.
it sucks that there is not a vaccine for men, but at least men are more likely to be carriers and less likely to actually get hpv. i have a couple of friends with hpv (both women) and the men they have slept with (before knowing they had it) have been tested with negative results on many occassions.

Re: the truth is that i don't know...

[identity profile] sooper.livejournal.com 2006-06-14 03:56 pm (UTC)(link)
That may be the reasoning, still, I wish there were some way of having a male vaccine, just like I wish there were male BC pills, but it's never work in the US market because so many men think they shouldn't have to take such a thing, because they're irresponsible dicks (pun kind of intended).

Re: the truth is that i don't know...

[identity profile] 2eclipse.livejournal.com 2006-06-14 04:27 pm (UTC)(link)
WOW.
do you really think that the production of bc pills for men is really hinged on male attitude toward the things?
i am 100% sure there would be a market for them. the pill causes some serious side-effects for some women that lead to cancer, fibroids, endometriosis and some other unpleasantries that are far worse than the moodswings, spotting and stuff. i know lots of guys who would spare their ladies these things if there was a safe way to do it. ross would in a heartbeat. there are other men who i think would just do it because their wives made them. and think of the military benefits! i would think that manwhores worldwide would embrace this idea! they would never have to worry about the chance of knocking a girl up and having to pay child-support! i thought they had difficulties with health problems and effectiveness and that this was why such things are not widely available.

Re: the truth is that i don't know...

[identity profile] sooper.livejournal.com 2006-06-14 04:38 pm (UTC)(link)
Might be a combination, I've just seen several articles about how companies are reluctant to produce one because their market research suggests that a majority of men would not take it if it existed because they think its "the woman's responsibility." I'm with Ross, I'd take it if it were available and safe, but there are a lot of macho idiots who would think taking birth control makes them "less of a man."

Re: the truth is that i don't know...

[identity profile] ventrueahole.livejournal.com 2006-06-14 07:51 pm (UTC)(link)
The problem with the male bc pill is that there is a small but not insignificant chance of causing sterility. It is also known to reduce libido in some men. I'm not against the idea of a pill for men but the current one is a crappy product.

[identity profile] ventrueahole.livejournal.com 2006-06-14 11:51 am (UTC)(link)
Do you have to be a woman to get this vaccine. I'm not worried about cervical cancer but they claim it will reduce your chance of getting genital warts by 90%. They made me watch that horrible slideshow in highschool that showed exactly what HPV looks like and I really don't want to get it.

[identity profile] 2eclipse.livejournal.com 2006-06-14 03:50 pm (UTC)(link)
genital warts are a pretty scary prospect, but there is treatment for them (though not a cure) that will prevent outbreaks.