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Divergent Discourses: Medical And Cultural Understandings Of Latina Reproductive Health In The Era Of Gardasil, Cindy Camacho

Honors Papers

In 2006, the vaccine Gardasil was distributed in the United States. Gardasil was created to block four strains of human papilloma virus (HPV), two of which cause about 70% of cervical cancer, and two others that cause 90% of genital warts. Although the Gardasil vaccine is an advance in the fight against cervical cancer, reports show that Latinas have low vaccination rates of Gardasil, disproportionately higher rates of cervical cancer and that cervical cancer screening rates are much lower for Latinas than women of other ethnicities. I argue that there is a disconnect between the Latina and medical discourses and …