I just had 1st shot of the vaccine last night. There are a total of 3 shots that will need to be taken at a certain time interval. 2nd shot will need to be taken after 2 months while 3rd shot, 1 year after that.
Why did I decide to take the vaccine?
A month ago, our office clinical services organized a lunch & learn about cervical cancer & HPV. Only ladies attended the training but it was such an enlightening event. Most of us ended up ordering vaccines since they were on sale. The original price per shot is Php5,000 but if we sign up that time, we’ll be able to get it at only Php3,000 per shot.
Here are my key takeaways from the training that made me decide to take it, there’s really nothing much to lose but a lot of things to gain from it:
- cervical cancer is cancer of the cervix, the lower part of the uterus that connects the womb & the vagina
- it’s estimated that 8 out of 10 women will get HPV in their lifetime. (for most women HPV will clear on its own, but for some women who do not clear certain types, cervical cancer & other diseases can develop).
- there’s no way to know whether a female’s body will or won’t clear the virus.
- 3 out of 4 HPV infections occur in women ages 15 to 24.
- It’s estimated that many people get HPV within their first 2 to 3 years of becoming sexually active.
- while half of all women who develop cervical cancer are between 35 and 55 years old, many of these women were probably exposed to a cancer-causing HPV type in their teens or 20s.
- 600 women die each day from cervical cancer worldwide.
There are about 30-40 HPV genital types but there is a vaccine available to protect ourselves against the ff. cancers & diseases caused by HPV types 6, 11, 16 & 18:
- cervical cancer
- vulvar cancer
- vaginal cancer
- genital warts
A vaccination is an essential part of protecting ourselves against diseases. Though it’s unlikely that I’ll be able to get the disease, it’s still best for us to protect ourselves.
Here is me with nurse Lhany while she was preparing me for the shot (not painful, so don’t worry), talk to your doctor about helping to protect yourself against cervical cancer, you need it 
More pictures here.
