American Council On Exercise-Human Papillomavirus-High Blood Pressure-Cervical Cancer

HPV Test Beats Pap Long-Term: Study

MONDAY, July 30 -- Testing for HPV, the human papillomavirus linked to cervical cancer, can predict which women will stay cancer-free for a decade or more, a new study shows.While both a positive HPV test and an abnormal result on a traditional... read more..

source:http://drugs.com

Health Tip: Hiking or Running on a Trail

-- If you're tired of the same running routine and the same old scenery, consider a new hiking or running trial.The American Council on Exercise makes these recommendations before you hit the trail for the first time:Hike a new trail before you... read more..

source:http://drugs.com

Health Tip: Managing Workplace Stress

-- No one's job is stress-free. But it's important to curtail workplace stress as much as possible to help quash possible side effects, including weight gain, high blood pressure and increased risk of heart attack.The American Council on Exercise... read more..

source:http://drugs.com

Human Papillomavirus-Gardasil Vaccine-Hpv Vaccinations-Cervical Cancer-Hpv Infections

Australia backs plan to give HPV vax Gardasil to boys

For the first time, boys in Australia will receive the Gardasil vaccine, a series of shots typically given to high school-aged girls to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, which can lead to cervical cancer.Under Australia's National Immunisation Program, boys ages 12 and 13 will get the three-round dose of the vaccine from U.S. drug giant Merck ($MRK). The program for boys is expected to cost $21.1 million over four years and include 870,000 vaccinations, along with an information campaign, a vaccine register and monitoring of adverse reactions, according to ABC News. This is all good news for Merck, which could greatly expand the market for Gardasil if other governments follow Australia's lead and pay for males to get the vaccine. 
"It is estimated that a quarter of new infections will be avoided by extending the vaccine to boys," said Federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek.Australia leads the way in vaccinating boys; many health experts for years campaigned to broaden the vaccine to males in their first year of high school. HPV infections hit both males and females, and spreads during sex. In recent years researchers have linked a growing number of cancer in men to the virus. Vaccinating both men and women will impact prevalence of anal, penile, vaginal and vulvar cancers, said Steve Hambleton, the president of the Australian Medical Association, as quoted by ABC.Stateside, about 20 million Americans are currently infected with HPV, according to data from National Institutes of Health. About 6 million more get infected each year. In related news, ABC reported a study that found that HPV vaccinations have reduced the risk of infection even in women who don't get the vaccine, a phenomenon known as herd immunity. 
- read the ABC News story about the male vaccinations
Related Articles:
New HPV vax could treat cancer rather than prevent it
Controversy halts HPV vax trial in India
Vaccines group in HPV price talks with Merck, GSK read more..

source:http://www.fiercevaccines.com

Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia-Human Papillomavirus-Prophylactic Vaccine-Dendritic Cells

HPV DNA vax should enter the clinic in 2013

Vaccibody's lead therapeutic DNA vaccine, developed for the treatment of precancerous changes in the cervix caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) infection, is expected to move into the clinic in late 2013 once funding is in place, the company CEO Ole Henrik Brekke told FierceVaccines  at BIO 2012. The trial will recruit women who are infected with HPV-16 and have cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) at grade 1 or 2.The Norwegian vaccine company has designed the vaccine to trigger a T cell response in a single shot by targeting the dendritic cells (also known as antigen-presenting cells). The HPV vaccine is administered just under the skin or into the muscle using electroporation technology, where a small charge allows the plasmid (a small circle of coding DNA) into the cell. The genetic information then harnesses the cell's manufacturing capabilities to create the three-component protein vaccine."We see a higher immune response than other DNA vaccines in animal studies, and it doesn't need an adjuvant," says Brekke. "We think that this is because the vaccine molecules adhere to the dendritic cells."Future formulations of the vaccine could use needle-free administration techniques. The technology also has potential for infectious disease and in veterinary use, as a prophylactic vaccine, and the company is in discussion with a number of potential partners, according to Brekke.- read the company overview at BIO 2012Related Articles:
GeoVax: Meeting the HIV vaccine challenge
DNA vaccine swats TB and HIV
Army uses ducks and DNA vax to make antivirals
Scancell's DNA melanoma vaccine poised for Phase II
DNA vaccine for prostate cancer moves into Phase III read more..

source:http://www.fiercevaccines.com

Government Of India-Cervical Cancer-Clinical Trial-Andhra Pradesh-Hpv Vaccine

Controversy halts HPV vax trial in India

Human papillomavirus infection is the cause of nearly all cases of cervical cancer, and so immunizing young women before they are exposed to the virus could save a great many lives. So, the idea of a large scale clinical trial of an HPV vaccine in India seems like a valid idea, based on the country's supposed huge cervical cancer healthcare burden. Not so--according to a paper published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, the epidemiology behind the study is flawed and the trial is currently the subject of an investigation by the Indian government.The trial was under the auspices of PATH, an international health charity, and included over 23,000 girls in the Indian states of Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. The charity had claimed that "in raw numbers, India has the largest burden of cancer of the cervix of any country worldwide." However, according to the study, led by Allyson Pollock of Barts and The London Medical School, the cancer surveillance, registration and monitoring in India in general, particularly in the Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh regions, were incomplete, so that it would be impossible to tell whether the vaccine would be successful in preventing the disease.The figures that do exist for India show that there were only 22 cases of cervical cancer per 100,000 in 2004/2005 in india, falling from 43 cases per 100,000 in 1982/1983--this is around half the rate in countries like Brazil and Zimbabwe."This trial has clearly raised serious concerns for the people and government of India," says Pollock. "We found that current data on cervical cancer incidence do not support PATH's claim that India has a large burden of cervical cancer or its decision to roll out the vaccine program."India does have major health burdens, for example in malaria and other infectious diseases, maternal anemia and malnutrition, and so the use of an expensive HPV vaccine, which is one of the more expensive vaccines on the market, for a health issue with a lower impact would seem to be a flawed use of limited financial resources.- read the press release
- see the paperRelated Articles:
GAVI Alliance could be closer to HPV vax deal
Gardasil could cut cancer in women already infected with HPV
Study: Most girls who get HPV vax say they see need to practice safe sex read more..

source:http://www.fiercevaccines.com

Cervical Cancer Vaccine-Human Papillomavirus-Gavi Alliance-Hpv Vaccines

GAVI Alliance could be closer to HPV vax deal

In November, the GAVI Alliance, a public-private partnership focused on saving lives and protecting health by increasing access to immunization, announced that it would look to introduce human papillomavirus (HPV) and rubella vaccines in developing countries. This seems to have come a step closer to reality, as, according to Reuters, GAVI is nearing a price deal with vaccine rivals GlaxoSmithKline ($GSK) and Merck ($MRK) for Gardasil and Cervarix. This could cut the more than 200,000 deaths from cervical cancer that occur every year in the developing world.A spokesperson for GAVI told Reuters that "at least one" of these pharmaceutical companies had made "encouraging progress towards an acceptable price" for GAVI-eligible countries, but hasn't identified the company.GSK was one of the first manufacturers to sign up to the alliance, agreeing to supply up to 300 million doses of its vaccine Synflorix for invasive pneumococcal disease. A GSK spokesperson has confirmed to Reuters that the company is in negotiation with GAVI over cervical cancer vaccine provision, adding that "GSK is committed to offering the lowest prices for its vaccines to the poorest countries.""The HPV vaccine is critical to women and girls in poorer countries because they usually do not have access to screening to prevent cervical cancer and treatment taken for granted in richer nations. Today, we have taken deliberate first steps to correct this inequity," said Dr. Seth Berkley, CEO of GAVI.If negotiations are successful and the vaccine can be delivered successfully to people in the developing countries, up to 2 million women and girls in 9 countries could be protected from cervical cancer by 2015.- read the article in ReutersRelated Articles:
Pfizer, GSK to provide more discount vaccines for GAVI
GAVI to bring HPV vaccines to poor countries
GAVI board hit with conflict of interest woes
GAVI Alliance pours $100M into meningitis vaccine
GSK under fire for delay of new vax program read more..

source:http://www.fiercevaccines.com

Autoimmune Disease-Hpv Vaccination-Cancer In Women-Vulvar Disease-Hpv Infection

Gardasil could cut cancer in women already infected with HPV

Merck's ($MRK) Gardasil is used for its ability to protect women and girls against HPV infection. However, it seems as if it may also help some women who are already infected. In fact, data from a study published in the British Medical Journal demonstrate women who are diagnosed with and treated for HPV-related disease may have a considerably reduced risk of reoccurring disease if they have had the shot.The study looked at the 1,350 women who were vaccinated in the FUTURE I and FUTURE II studies and then diagnosed with HPV-related vaginal or vulval diseases (including genital warts) or had cervical surgery. Previous studies have shown vaccination doesn't lower a woman's chance of developing cervical pre-cancers if she had an HPV infection at the time of vaccination. However, this study showed that for women who had cervical surgery after the trials, the chance of developing another bout of HPV-related disease was almost halved. For women with vaginal or vulvar disease, the risk of another HPV disease was cut by around a third.According to the authors, only long-term surveillance can determine the effectiveness of the vaccination in this population. There are a number of ongoing trials to look at the safety and impact of HPV vaccines on subsequent diseases.Still, "[t]he current study moves us closer to understanding the full scope of benefits from HPV vaccination by showing for the first time that vaccine protection against disease can endure beyond the management of HPV related disease in women already vaccinated," states Jane Kim, assistant professor of health decision science at the Harvard School of Public Health, in the BMJ editorial. However, she adds it's too early to generalize from these results. To find out more about the value of Gardasil in women who are already infected will take more and longer studies, but this one does show a glimmer of hope.- get more from the BMJ
- see the abstract in the BMJ
- check out the editorial in the BMJ (reg. req.)
- follow-up the article in Medscape Medical News (reg. req.)
- read the piece in CNN HealthRelated Articles:
Study: Gardasil does not cause autoimmune disease
Gardasil bests Cervarix in cost effectiveness battle
FDA rejects Merck's Gardasil for women over 26
Study: Gardasil effective in boys, men
HPV shot provides sustained protection against pre-cancerous growths read more..

source:http://www.fiercevaccines.com