2 Additional Topics

I was thinking about what else I would like to work on...
I guess the first would be to talk about is the new HPV vaccine, Gardisil. There is a lot of controversy over whether parents want to administer the drug to their pre-pubescent daughters to provide protection from an STD they may get in the future that could lead to cervical cancer. The commercial uses the slogan, "One Less" to show strong girls who are taking a stance against getting cervical cancer... but I'm sure there are mothers out there that do not want to send the message to their daughters that because they are now protected from this one disease, they are given the green light to become sexually active. Another controversial topic would be the fact that the vaccine hasent been extensively tested, and mothers are afraid of the long term effects of the drug. However, cervical cancer is the number 2 killer among women. If this vaccine can overcome hurdles, such as price (at $360.00, it is the most expensive vaccine ever produced) and the sessions of treatments (3 treatments spread over 6 months), it could possibly become a mandatory vaccine for school-aged girls. I'd be excited to get out into the community to see what reaction people have to this topic.

The second would be the wide spread infiltration of meth in Hawaii. This topic is really interesting, because it is a drug problem that has arisen out of the inability to smuggle other "traditional" drugs like cocaine and heroine out to the islands. Meth is made in home-based labs on the island, and is the most readily available drug. In 2005, meth was cited as one of the island's largest problems, accounting for over half of drug seisures, vs. 14% for the rest of the country. It would be incredibly hard to document this, geographically as well as socially. People who are users would be wary of a foreigner who was wanting to document thier drug problem. The other problem would be that getting the story would be incredibly dangerous. But, this would be a great topic to explore.