HPV Prevention Update - Carrageenan

[joreth]

The topic of HPV and other STIs comes up quite often on poly forums.  I usually throw my two cents in, but it's been a few months since I did my own research, so I figured I should go out there and look at what new developments there may or may not be in HPV treatment and prevention.

Rather than re-quote all the basic stuff again, I refer you to my

Comments

[joreth]

The thing is, there is a particular way to "cook it up". I don't recall the particulars off-hand, but one way breaks down the molecular structure to a point where it's harmful to be ingested. The other way is the method that is used in food products, which is not harmful AT ALL. Technically, you can boil the seaweed yourself if you want to (I hear it's fairly simple, which is why it's cheap and easy-to-manufacture product available in just about everything), but it seems like rather a lot of hassel when they make lubes with it already.

How long it will take to make it to the market depends entirely upon 1) how long the various Phase III testing goes 2) how quickly the researchers can convince a pharm company to take it up and produce it and 3) how much effort those companies put into mass distribution into the US. It may be marketed to Third World countries first. Just like the guy who invented the condom that takes 3 seconds or less to apply because of the unique wrapper = applicator design, this condom is being marketed primarily outside the US to convince Third World guys that the "complicated" application process is no excuse anymore:

Once Merk got the government's approval for their HPV vaccine, it was only a matter of weeks before it became the latest and greatest thing on the market with everyone pushing it. It helped that Merk was the pharm company AND the research company AND that they started the early marketing strategy before it was even approved (going to the medical community to enlist their help when it finally did get approved). If there is any sort of profit to be had, it will move faster. The only other way is if some sort of philantropist who has both money and political power takes up the cause, the way Merk did (in the sense that they're a big, bad corporation who believed this was for the "greater good", in addition to seeing profit).

[dawnd]

Wow. Thanks for the link to that condom ad! I'd not heard of that, and it's quite amazing. Much better than the one we tried a couple years ago that was supposed to be reversible. That turned out to be difficult to get on no matter which way you tried it.

Unfortunately, I'm betting this cool applicator thingie is only sold with regular latex condoms, so I'm unlikely to be using it myself (slight sensitivity), but man oh man is that a good idea.

I'm divided about the Merck vaccine (it's certainly not 100% effective), but I do think that ANYthing is better than NOTHING, which is what we had before. So in that regard, it's a good step. I hope that we get the carregeenan lubes IN ADDITION to the vaccine, though. I DO think it's all "for the greater good," in that reducing rates of such a commonly occurring cancer is a good thing--less costly for everyone, "health" "care" companies included.

[joreth]

Last I heard, this quickie-condom was not available in the US, but I admit to not have kept up on the progress of its marketing.

The vaccine is a great idea and I'm excited about it. True, it's only good for 4 of the strains, but they're the two strains that cause the most amount of cancer cases and the two strains that cause the bulk of the warts cases, so those are pretty good odds.

If you can convince your doctor to give you the shots off-label, and throw in using Carrageenan lube regularly in addition to your regular safe sex practices, you'll be pretty set. The Carrageenan lube is already available, just do a google search if you can't find it in your local sex stores.