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Tomljenovic L, McHenry LB. A reactogenic "placebo" and the ethics of informed consent in Gardasil HPV vaccine clinical trials: A case study from Denmark. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RISK & SAFETY IN MEDICINE 2024; 35:159-180. [PMID: 38788092 PMCID: PMC11191454 DOI: 10.3233/jrs-230032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Medical ethics guidelines require of clinical trial investigators and sponsors to inform prospective trial participants of all known and potential risks associated with investigational medical products, and to obtain their free informed consent. These guidelines also require that clinical research be so designed as to minimize harms and maximize benefits. OBJECTIVE To examine Merck's scientific rationale for using a reactogenic aluminum-containing "placebo" in Gardasil HPV vaccine pre-licensure clinical trials. METHODS We examined the informed consent form and the recruitment brochure for the FUTURE II Gardasil vaccine trial conducted in Denmark; and we interviewed several FUTURE II trial participants and their treating physicians. We also reviewed regulatory documentation related to Gardasil vaccine approval process and the guidelines on evaluation of adjuvants used in human vaccines. RESULTS It was found that the vaccine manufacturer Merck made several inaccurate statements to trial participants that compromised their right to informed consent. First, even though the study protocol listed safety testing as one of the study's primary objectives, the recruitment brochure emphasized that FUTURE II was not a safety study, and that the vaccine had already been proven safe. Second, the advertising material for the trial and the informed consent forms stated that the placebo was saline or an inactive substance, when, in fact, it contained Merck's proprietary highly reactogenic aluminum adjuvant which does not appear to have been properly evaluated for safety. Several trial participants experienced chronic disabling symptoms, including some randomized to the adjuvant "placebo" group. CONCLUSION In our view, the administration of a reactive placebo in Gardasil clinical trials was without any possible benefit, needlessly exposed study subjects to risks, and was therefore a violation of medical ethics. The routine use of aluminum adjuvants as "placebos" in vaccine clinical trials is inappropriate as it hinders the discovery of vaccine-related safety signals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Leemon B. McHenry
- Department of Philosophy, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA
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Semmler A, Mundorf AK, Kuechler AS, Schulze-Bosse K, Heidecke H, Schulze-Forster K, Schott M, Uhrberg M, Weinhold S, Lackner KJ, Pawlitzki M, Meuth SG, Boege F, Ruhrländer J. Chronic Fatigue and Dysautonomia following COVID-19 Vaccination Is Distinguished from Normal Vaccination Response by Altered Blood Markers. Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:1642. [PMID: 38005974 PMCID: PMC10674626 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11111642] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Revised: 10/20/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccination can entail chronic fatigue/dysautonomia tentatively termed post-acute COVID-19 vaccination syndrome (PACVS). We explored receptor autoantibodies and interleukin-6 (IL-6) as somatic correlates of PACVS. Blood markers determined before and six months after first-time SARS-CoV-2 vaccination of healthy controls (N = 89; 71 females; mean/median age: 39/49 years) were compared with corresponding values of PACVS-affected persons (N = 191; 159 females; mean/median age: 40/39 years) exhibiting chronic fatigue/dysautonomia (≥three symptoms for ≥five months after the last SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccination) not due to SARS-CoV-2 infection and/or confounding diseases/medications. Normal vaccination response encompassed decreases in 11 receptor antibodies (by 25-50%, p < 0.0001), increases in two receptor antibodies (by 15-25%, p < 0.0001) and normal IL-6. In PACVS, serological vaccination-response appeared significantly (p < 0.0001) altered, allowing discrimination from normal post-vaccination state (sensitivity = 90%, p < 0.0001) by increased Angiotensin II type 1 receptor antibodies (cut-off ≤ 10.7 U/mL, ROC-AUC = 0.824 ± 0.027), decreased alpha-2B adrenergic receptor antibodies (cut-off ≥ 25.2 U/mL, ROC-AUC = 0.828 ± 0.025) and increased IL-6 (cut-off ≤ 2.3 pg/mL, ROC-AUC = 0.850 ± 0.022). PACVS is thus indicated as a somatic syndrome delineated/detectable by diagnostic blood markers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amelie Semmler
- Central Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Diagnostics, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (A.S.); (A.K.M.); (A.S.K.); (K.S.-B.)
| | - Anna Katharina Mundorf
- Central Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Diagnostics, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (A.S.); (A.K.M.); (A.S.K.); (K.S.-B.)
| | - Anna Sabrina Kuechler
- Central Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Diagnostics, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (A.S.); (A.K.M.); (A.S.K.); (K.S.-B.)
| | - Karin Schulze-Bosse
- Central Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Diagnostics, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (A.S.); (A.K.M.); (A.S.K.); (K.S.-B.)
| | - Harald Heidecke
- Cell Trend GmbH, 14943 Luckenwalde, Germany; (H.H.); (K.S.-F.)
| | | | - Matthias Schott
- Division for Specific Endocrinology, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany;
| | - Markus Uhrberg
- Institute for Transplantation Diagnostics and Cell Therapeutics, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (M.U.); (S.W.)
| | - Sandra Weinhold
- Institute for Transplantation Diagnostics and Cell Therapeutics, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (M.U.); (S.W.)
| | - Karl J. Lackner
- University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, 55101 Mainz, Germany;
| | - Marc Pawlitzki
- Department of Neurology, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (M.P.); (S.G.M.)
| | - Sven Guenther Meuth
- Department of Neurology, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (M.P.); (S.G.M.)
| | - Fritz Boege
- Central Institute for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Diagnostics, Medical Faculty, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; (A.S.); (A.K.M.); (A.S.K.); (K.S.-B.)
| | - Jana Ruhrländer
- Selbsthilfegruppe Post-Vac-Syndrom Deutschland e.V., 34121 Kassel, Germany;
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Effect of Different Educational Interventions on Knowledge of HPV Vaccination and Cervical Cancer among Young Women: A Preliminary Report. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:ijerph19095191. [PMID: 35564586 PMCID: PMC9105621 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19095191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Revised: 04/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The incidence and mortality rates of cervical cancer are rising among young women in Japan. In November 2021, the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare reinstated the active recommendation for the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, which was discontinued in June 2013 due to reports of adverse reactions, including chronic pain and motor dysfunction, following vaccination. However, vaccine hesitancy among the younger generation remains, and it is essential to identify the barriers in vaccination uptake. Therefore, we aimed to conduct a randomized study using different methods of providing educational contents to improve health literacy regarding cervical cancer and HPV vaccination among female students in Japan. Here, we present the results of our preliminary report and discuss current topics related to HPV vaccination in Japan. Data were collected from 27 female students—divided into three groups: no intervention, print-based intervention, and social networking service-based intervention—using the health literacy scale and communicative and critical health literacy scale. Our primary results indicate that participants’ knowledge and health literacy improved post-intervention. Therefore, medical professionals must provide accurate scientific knowledge regarding routine HPV vaccination and the risk of cervical cancer to young women to improve their health literacy and subsequently increase the HPV vaccination rates.
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