Tragic Cancer Death at Age 28 -- New Vaccine Could Spare Others
June 8, 2006— -- When Sara Lyle and Heather Martin met as freshman in high school, they became instant friends and imagined they would remain so well into their golden years.
"A mutual friend of ours introduced us, and we hit it off right away," said Lyle, a senior editor at JANE who told Martin's story in the March issue of the magazine. "She was just so positive and upbeat, and such a real joy to be around."
But the friends' time together was cut short in 2005 when Martin died of cervical cancer at the age of 28.
"The cancer progressed so rapidly and she got so sick so fast," Lyle said. "She did one round of chemo and one round of radiation. Unfortunately, it did not work."
The human papillomavirus -- HPV -- causes about 70 percent of cervical cancer. Worldwide about 500,000 new cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed, and nearly 300,0000 women die from it every year, according to the American Cancer Society.
While it is too late for Heather, there is hope for other young women. Today the Food and Drug Administration approved Gardasil, the first vaccine for HPV.
"There's huge excitement in the medical community," said ABC News' medical editor Dr. Tim Johnson.
In addition to cervical cancer, HPV can cause vulvar and vaginal cancer, abnormal pap smears, contamination of the birth canal and genital warts for both men and women.
"The excitement about this vaccine is that it will greatly reduce the risk for all of these problems," Johnson said.
Johnson said the next step is for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's advisory committee on immunization practices to make recommendations on how and when the vaccine will be used.
"Medically speaking, it is clear it would best be given to very young girls before they become sexually active, even if they intend to be abstinent," Johnson said. "When they get married, their husband might infect them because it is widely transmitted from men to women."
Some groups say requiring young girls to be vaccinated against HPV infringes on rights of parents.
Getting vaccinated later in life isn't necessarily futile.
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