Vaccination against the Human Papillomavirus: The lessons we have not learned

Recent conversations regarding the vaccine against the Human Papillomavirus have focused on scientific concerns of effectiveness and scope of prevention as well as social, political and economic concerns including who should be eligible to receive the vaccine and why. However, discussions to date have not reflected on comparable historical perspectives including lessons learned in the development and marketing of the Hepatitis B vaccine. These two vaccines have remarkably similar public health implications in the prevention of specific cancers as well as generating alike social, political and financial concerns. The present paper examines these similarities with the intention of providing perspective on the current Human Papillomavirus vaccine debate and advocating for more expedient and expansive vaccine availability. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.