text_1: Cervical cancer vaccine up for FDA review
text_2: This story clearly distinguishes between infection with the human papillomavirus (HPV) – which Merck’s new Gardasil vaccine aims to prevent – and the development of cervical cancer, prevention of which is the ultimate goal of the vaccine. However, it fails to explain a few things about the vaccine and its target, such as how many women are infected with the cancer-causing HPV strains, how many women develop cervical cancer, and perhaps most importantly, what researchers know about how well this new vaccine works to prevent cancer or precancerous changes in the cervix. Hearing more about this from an independent expert, rather than from two Merck representatives, would have provided some balance. While it states that cervical cancer is a leading cancer killer in developing countries, the article doesn’t address the potential cost of the vaccine in those areas (or in the US).