Original article (in Serbian) was published on 17/06/2022
“Another untested vaccine” this, is how the anti-vaxxers in Viber groups that promote conspiracy theories and the treatment of the coronavirus with ivermectin describe the vaccine against the HPV virus (human papilloma virus), which has recently been given in Serbia as well. This vaccine, however, is not untested – it has been on the world market for almost 20 years, and so far, according to the data of the Public Health Institute “Batut”, no serious risks have been recorded that would make it unsafe. Claims that this vaccine “reduces the population” because it allegedly causes infertility are false and dangerous. According to all long-term research, the vaccine is extremely safe. There is also no evidence that it reduces fertility – on the other hand, this is greatly reduced by cervical cancer, which HPV is one of the causes.
In numerous anti-vaxxer groups on social networks, which Raskrikavanje’s journalists follow every day, everything that comes from official medicine is harshly received. The main villains are the World Health Organization and the pharmaceutical industry, there has been a campaign against vaccines for the coronavirus since the very beginning and “alternative”, ineffective or even dangerous methods of treatment are being promoted. In their claims, members of these groups use misinformation that is easy to verify, and Raskrikavanje has written about it on several occasions.
Regarding the news about the introduction of HPV vaccination in Serbia, it is claimed that it is “another untested vaccine”, and Viber groups are sharing an interview with the alleged doctor Leonard Caldwell, who believes that the HPV vaccine serves to control the reproduction of the human population.
Fact-checkers in the world have already disputed Caldwell’s expertise. As the web portal Factcheck.cz writes, and as can be concluded from his website, this man has no education in medicine. He describes himself as a naturopath and “doctor of philosophy in psychology”. He promotes himself as a cancer doctor, but he is actually a motivational speaker who claims that at the age of 14 he cured his mother of cancer, cirrhosis of the liver and hepatitis naturally. He is the author of numerous books in which he provides solutions for cancer, stress, greater business success, tyranny and better marketing. He also claims that the pharmaceutical mafia, led by Rockefeller, tried to kill him six times.
His specific claims about reducing the population are not true either – as stated by “Batut”, there is no evidence that the HPV vaccine affects fertility. On the other hand, uterine cancer greatly affects both fertility and a woman’s life, but anti-vaxxers all over the internet are apparently not interested in that fact.
“There is no data suggesting that the use of the HPV vaccine could have effects on fertility. There is a possibility that the treatment of cervical cancer results in the inability of a woman to have a child. It is also possible that the treatment of pre-cervical cancers leads to damage to the cervix, which can lead to premature birth or other problems”, they state from “Batut”.
The vaccine is not untested or dangerous
Another video that came to Viber from the Odysee platform is entitled “Why the HPV vaccine is one of the worst on the market”, suggesting that the vaccine is ineffective, dangerous and, in some cases, even causes death.
Batut, however, as well as other world public health organizations, state that the vaccine is very effective and safe, and that this has been confirmed by long-term clinical trials. According to scientific data cited by “Batut”, it provides almost 100 percent protection against precancerous changes and genital warts. Since it was first released on the US market in 2006, it has practically halved the rate of HPV infections among teenage girls. All over the world, in countries that introduced vaccination, the occurrence of genital warts as well as precancerous changes has decreased.
In addition to being effective, the vaccine has also been proven to be safe for use.
“In the long-term studies and monitoring of the safety of the HPV vaccine, which began back in 2006, when the vaccine was first put on the market, no serious safety conditions related to the vaccination were recorded. “The HPV vaccine has been assessed as extremely safe by the Global Advisory Committee on Vaccination”, they state in “Batut”.
The vaccine against the HPV virus (human papilloma virus) arrived in Serbia on June 3, and since then children and young people of both sexes, from nine to 19 years of age, can receive it at the expense of the RFZO, before the first sexual intercourse.
Vaccination is recommended for children and teenagers who have not yet come into contact with the virus. It can also be given to the elderly at their own expense. The vaccine in the elderly population causes a weaker immune response than in younger people, and it will also protect only against those types of HPV virus (there are about 120 of them) to which the person has not been exposed.
This virus is very widespread and, according to the “Batut” Institute, practically every sexually active person will come into contact with it at least once in their lifetime. At the same time, it can be very dangerous, because it can cause very serious problems in both men and women: from genital warts (condyloma), to different types of cancer – cervical, oral cavity and pharynx, anus, vulva, vagina and penile cancer.
Every year, 14 million new cases of cervical cancer are recorded in the world, and Serbia is at the very top among European countries in terms of incidence and death from cervical cancer.
According to data from the European HPV Center (hpvcentre.net), in 2020, Serbia was third in Europe (behind Montenegro and Romania) in the rate of cervical cancer related to HPV infection, as well as in the mortality rate.
Batut’s data show the grim reality even more precisely – between 300 and 900 women die from this disease in Serbia every year.
In addition to regular gynecological and urological examinations, which are advised to every sexually active person, as well as screening (organized, mass testing of people), one of the forms of prevention is precisely the vaccine.
There are several vaccines for the HPV virus, but the nine-valent Gardasil vaccine is given in Serbia, which was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2014, and by the European Medicines Agency in 2015. Since this year, it has also been approved by the domestic Medicines Agency.
Very detailed explanations about the HPV virus, dangers, diseases, as well as the vaccine itself, can be found on the website of “Batut” – here.
Who is spreading this misinformation?
The mentioned recordings came to Viber from the Odysee platform, which in recent years has been an increasingly popular alternative to YouTube. Since YouTube bans and removes videos that spread misinformation about health, the coronavirus, and similar, many creators “migrated” from YouTube to Odysee, so this site has become one of the main channels for anti-vaxxer videos and conspiracy theories, which are spread from there to other networks like Viber.
In Serbia, in the world of anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists, there are popular groups such as “Covid-library”, “Rebellion against the new world order”, “LRNE – parents’ meeting for survival”, “Truth against plandemic” and others.
In terms of organization, the group “LRNE – parents’ meeting for survival” is leading the way, which was started by people gathered in the initiative Doctors and parents for science and ethics. They became known for promoting ivermectin against coronavirus, which is why the Medical Chamber of Serbia initiated proceedings against doctors who prescribed unapproved ivermectin therapies. Raskrikavanje wrote about it here.
This time, Nada Gladovic, one of the most active members and moderators, shared a video about the HPV vaccine as the “worst on the market” in the LRNE group. Gladovic, by the way, is not a doctor, although some members of this group call her a “doctor”. On her Linkedin profile, she states that she works in marketing, and until recently it was also written that she sells hemp products. She is a member of the Dveri Women’s Council and an active participant in anti-vaxxer protests.
The video “Why the HPV vaccine is one of the worst on the market”, as well as the video “The HPV vaccine is used for reproductive control – Dr Coldwell”, which are proof to anti-vaxxers that the vaccine is dangerous, came to Viber from the Odysee platform, more precisely from the channel owned by Marija Stojakovic, better known on social networks as MarijaS.
Her recognition in the world of anti-vaxxers is largely due to the YouTube channel Balkan Info, where she has been a guest almost once a month since last February. Among other things, she talked about how the world is in the clutches of the powerful, about the new world order, secret societies and the deep state. She is signed as a vocal artist who has lived in Australia for decades, and as a “fighter against the new world order”. On her YouTube channel, which gathers over 15,000 subscribers, Stojakovic talks about similar things, but also about a diet with raw fruits and vegetables, which can supposedly cure various diseases.
Stojakovic, like other video creators, leaves more “problematic” topics concerning specific drugs and treatments, disputing vaccines and the like for the platform Odysee. There, the content is more specific, and the dangerous misinformation is very obvious – in the videos that Marija Stojakovic posts on her channel, it is claimed, among other things, that the Gardasil vaccine causes cancer and is dangerous, and parents are explicitly urged not to give it to their children. Alternative ways of treating cancer with water, plants, and in general self-directed treatment, without going to a doctor, are promoted.
Many videos are translations of obscure shows from English to Serbian, where people without credibility or medical education are guests.
