#9581 02-13-2007 09:21 AM | Joined: Sep 2002 Posts: 642 "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) | OP  "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts)
Joined: Sep 2002 Posts: 642 | Friends, As I am sure many of you have seen on TV or read in the newspaper, our right wing governor of Texas has ordered mandatory HPV vaccinations for all school aged girls 12 to 13 years old. Predictably...it has created a firestorm from the Governor's own right wing religious base even though the proposed law (decreed by the Gov, not passed by the legislature) would allow parents to choose to opt out for their children. Of course we are hearing the usual right wing babble about encouraging sex, etc. One wonders why a conservative governor who has in all of his years in office, done absolutely nothing regarding the health and welfare of Texans (especially the young and the poor) would take such a controversial stand. Of course his former chief of staff is the main lobbyist in the State of Texas for Merck, the maker of the Gardisil vaccine. It is an intriguing battle....and fun to watch. Does this guy really care about women getting cervical cancer or is he a cheap shill for the pharmaceutical industry? We don't know, but it is fun to watch...and in the end, perhaps some good will come from it. Danny G.
Stage IV Base of Tongue SCC
Diagnosed July 1, 2002, chemo and radiation treatments completed beginning of Sept/02.
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#9582 02-13-2007 12:13 PM | Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8,311 Senior Patient Advocate Patient Advocate (old timer, 2000 posts) | | Senior Patient Advocate Patient Advocate (old timer, 2000 posts)
Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8,311 | Danny,
I was a Tax Lobbyist for the ABA in Washington, DC for 4 years and I could tell you some really unbelievable stories about people the press always made out to be saints.
David
Age 58 at Dx, HPV16+ SCC, Stage IV BOT+2 nodes, non smoker, casual drinker, exercise nut, Cisplatin x 3 & concurrent IMRT x 35,(70 Gy), no surgery, no Peg, Tx at Moffitt over Aug 06. Jun 07, back to riding my bike 100 miles a wk. Now doing 12 Spin classes and 60 outdoor miles per wk. Nov 13 completed Hilly Century ride for Cancer, 104 miles, 1st Place in my age group. Apr 2014 & 15, Spun for 9 straight hrs to raise $$ for YMCA's Livestrong Program. Certified Spin Instructor Jun 2014.
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#9583 02-21-2007 03:20 PM | Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 218 Gold Member (200+ posts) | | Gold Member (200+ posts)
Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 218 | Not knowing anything at all about the governor of Texas, it seems, that regardless of his motivation, he is making a strong effort to protect young girls and women from the HPV virus. I hope that he will succeed in getting this legislation passed. - Sheldon
Dx 1/29/04, SCC, T2N0M0
Tx 2/12/04 Surgery, 4/15/04 66 Gy. radiation (36 sessions)
Dx 3/15/2016, SCC, pT1NX
Tx 3/29/16 Surgery
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#9584 02-21-2007 04:21 PM | Joined: May 2006 Posts: 720 Likes: 1 "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts) | | "Above & Beyond" Member (500+ posts)
Joined: May 2006 Posts: 720 Likes: 1 | The Associated Press just moved a story that Perry's chief of staff met with other top aides to discuss the vaccine on Oct. 16 -- the same day that Merck made a $5,000 contribution to Perry's re-election campaign and a total of $5,000 in contributions to the campaigns of eight state legislators. Perry's spokesman describes the timing of the meeting and the donations as unrelated and merely a coincidence. The story also notes, as Danny G. did, that Perry's former chief of staff is now a Merck lobbyist.
Sheldon -- the vaccination requirement came in an executive order (no legislation was necessary). The state legislature is now considering overriding that executive order.
-- Leslie
Leslie
April 2006: Husband dx by dentist with leukoplakia on tongue. Oral surgeon's biopsy 4/28/06: Moderate dysplasia; pathology report warned of possible "skip effect." ENT's excisional biopsy (got it all) 5/31/06: SCC in situ/small bit superficially invasive. Early detection saves lives.
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