Are the Headlines Hijacking Your Sex Life?
By Kelly Marages
THE SCARE: Pharmacists
across the country
are turning away
patients with
prescriptions for
"emergency
contraception."
—Chicago Tribune, May 17, 2005
THE DETAILS: The latest battle over
emergency contraception (EC) isn't a
fight for over-the-counter availability;
it's a fight for availability, period. A
growing number of pharmacists are
refusing to fill EC prescriptions.
THE TRUTH: Some states allow pharmacists
to cite so-called conscience
clauses and opt out of filling any prescription that violates their
personal beliefs. This forces women
to search — sometimes far and wide —
for a pharmacy that will fill it. Meanwhile,
the clock is ticking: EC is most
effective within 72 hours of a broken
condom or unprotected sex.
Pharmacist refusals have been documented
in at least 12 states. Representative
Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)
and Senator Frank R. Lautenberg
(D-NJ) introduced federal legislation
last April, called the Access to Legal
Pharmaceuticals Act, that would require
pharmacies to fill all valid prescriptions
in a timely manner. (Call
or write your congresspeople to urge
them to support this bill — find contact
information at congress.org.)
Until such a law is passed, avoid
hassles at the pharmacy — find out if
your doctor has a supply of EC in her
office to dispense to patients, says
ob/gyn Tina Raine, M.D., of the
University of California San Francisco.
Or, ask your doctor to recommend
a pharmacy in your area that
employs people who will dispense it.
THE SCARE: HPV, a sexually
transmitted disease
that 20 million
Americans have, is
identified as a
cancer agent.
—The Washington Times, February 1, 2005
THE DETAILS: HPV (the human
papillomavirus), a culprit in the
majority of cervical-cancer cases, is
added to the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services' known carcinogen
list.
THE TRUTH: Although millions of
women have HPV ("it's the common cold of sexually acquired infections,"
says ob/gyn Paula Hillard, M.D.,
of the University of Cincinnati College
of Medicine), it doesn't always cause
cancer. Any of 100 similar viruses can
be considered HPV. Some cause genital
warts, others cause cell growth
that can lead to cancer, and others do
nothing at all.
How do you know which one you have?
An HPV DNA test can tell you, but
it's generally not recommended for
women under 30 — the virus often vanishes
on its own in younger women.
After that, an HPV DNA test is optional.
At any age, experts say that your
best defense against cervical cancer is
still a regular Pap test. If you're in your
20s, get a Pap every year — you can get
one every two years if your doctor
uses a liquid-based Pap test (they can
tell you if they do). If you're in your
30s and you've had three normal Paps
in a row, you can get screened every
two or three years.
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