Curious for more on this subject, and not wanting to ignore what the current standard advice is, so as not to commit the same error as those who won't listen to 'conspiracy theorists,' I looked up hepatocellular carcinoma on Medscape.
"Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a primary malignancy of the liver that occurs predominantly in patients with underlying chronic liver disease and cirrhosis. However, up to 25% of patients have no history of cirrhosis or risk factors for it.
"The incidence of HCC has been rising worldwide over the last 20 years [in the face of widespread immunization for decades?!--Fla Mom] and is expected to increase until 2030 in some countries, including the United States.[1] The incidence of HCC is highest in Asia and Africa, where the endemic high prevalence of hepatitis B and hepatitis C strongly predisposes to the development of chronic liver disease and subsequent development of HCC. [but apparently India was a low-incidence country, and it accounts for a large proportion of all Asians, I'd think, so in which Asian countries, exactly, is the incidence highest, I wonder?]
"Current international vaccination strategies for hepatitis B virus (HBV), and advances in the management of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections, promise to have a major impact on the incidence of HCC, but their benefit will be realized slowly because of the very long latency period—20-30 years—from hepatic damage to HCC development. [lol - *very* slowly, apparently; I wonder if any benefit has been shown in, say, health care workers required to be immunized for these many decades (~40 years ago in my case).]
"Meanwhile, however, there is a growing problem with cirrhosis due to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), specifically nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). NASH, which typically develops in the setting of obesity, type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hypertension, appears to lead the list of risk factors for HCC in the United States.[2, 3] [Doh!] ...
"In general, cirrhosis of any etiology is the major risk factor for HCC.[16, 17] About 80% of patients with newly diagnosed HCC have preexisting cirrhosis. Major causes of cirrhosis in the United States are nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), alcohol abuse, hepatitis C infection, and [bringing up the rear, apparently] hepatitis B infection.[2] ...
"In the analysis of a large managed care database, the incidence of HCC linked to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease rose by 10 times from 0.03-0.46 per 100,000 between the years 1997 and 2005.[21] Currently, HCC non-alcoholic fatty liver disease has the greatest proportion of the burden of the main risk factors for HCC in the United States.[2, 3, 22] ...
"The global prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection was estimated to be 296 million persons in 2019[23] ; chronic HBV infection is the most common cause of HCC worldwide [no citation for this comment, I note]. In the United States, about 20% of HCC cases are thought to be related to chronic HBV infection. ...
"It is anticipated that with implementation of worldwide vaccination, the incidence of hepatitis B–related HCC will decrease. In a study from Taiwan, where universal hepatitis B vaccination in newborns and children was instituted in 1984, the average annual incidence of HCC per 100,000 children age 6-14 years declined from 0.70 in 1981-1986 to 0.36 in 1990-1994 (P< 0.01).[24] By the end of 2020, hepatitis B vaccine for infants had been introduced nationwide in 190 countries; in addition,113 countries had introduced one dose of hepatitis B vaccine to newborns within the first 24 hours of life, and the estimated global coverage was 42%, ranging from 6% in the World Health Organization (WHO) African region to 84% in the WHO Western Pacific Region.[25] [It'll be interesting to see what happens to HCC rates in African nations with low HBV vaccine uptake; like having a control group.] ...
"In the United States, liver cancer is the most rapidly increasing cancer in both men and women, with incidence rates more than tripling since 1980; from 2006 to 2015, the rate increased by about 3% per year. ... Liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancers are the fifth most common cause of cancer deaths in men in the US, and the seventh most common in women. ...
"Globally, the incidence of liver cancer among men and women who are younger than 30 years and those aged 30 to 59 years has declined, largely due to national hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination programs.[29, 30]
"By racial and ethnic group, rates are highest in Hispanics, followed by Asians/Pacific Islanders, then American Indians/Alaska Natives, blacks, and whites.[28] ...
"[In 2020, t]he incidence was highest in East Asia, at 17.9 per 100,000 population (26.9 in males and 8.9 in females), followed by Micronesia, northern Africa, Southeast Asia, and Melanesia. The incidence was lowest in south-central Asia (3.0 per 100,000) and South America (4.4 per 100,000). By comparison, the incidence rate was 6.9 per 100,00 in northern America and 5.6 per 100,000 in western Europe. Overall, the incidence rate of liver cancer is approximately three times higher in males than in females. Mortality figures mirror the incidence figures.[1] ...
"Steady declines in HCC mortality are predicted for East Asia. In contrast, Northern and Central Europe, North America, and Latin America are showing unfavorable trends.[32] According to an analysis of data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study, the number of liver cancer cases increased nearly threefold in older men and more than twofold in older women (aged 60 years or more) from 1990 to 2017. The increase consisted mainly of cases secondary to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH; popularly known as fatty liver disease).[29, 30]" [looking forward to the educational programs on how to prevent and reduce metabolic syndrome, but since educational programs don't make money like vaccines or cancer treatments, I'm not holding my breath.]
As a parent of a child who never got a single needle, I can say it was a scary decision at the time but now that she's a teen I can look back and realise I have no regrets. Maybe we got lucky as she was never exposed to any of the 'dreaded' childhood diseases, but all I know is she never once struggled with fevers, ear infections, auto-immune issues or being on the spectrum, and I'm very thankful for that.
Great follow up to episode 4 shot in the dark.
Curious for more on this subject, and not wanting to ignore what the current standard advice is, so as not to commit the same error as those who won't listen to 'conspiracy theorists,' I looked up hepatocellular carcinoma on Medscape.
"Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a primary malignancy of the liver that occurs predominantly in patients with underlying chronic liver disease and cirrhosis. However, up to 25% of patients have no history of cirrhosis or risk factors for it.
"The incidence of HCC has been rising worldwide over the last 20 years [in the face of widespread immunization for decades?!--Fla Mom] and is expected to increase until 2030 in some countries, including the United States.[1] The incidence of HCC is highest in Asia and Africa, where the endemic high prevalence of hepatitis B and hepatitis C strongly predisposes to the development of chronic liver disease and subsequent development of HCC. [but apparently India was a low-incidence country, and it accounts for a large proportion of all Asians, I'd think, so in which Asian countries, exactly, is the incidence highest, I wonder?]
"Current international vaccination strategies for hepatitis B virus (HBV), and advances in the management of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections, promise to have a major impact on the incidence of HCC, but their benefit will be realized slowly because of the very long latency period—20-30 years—from hepatic damage to HCC development. [lol - *very* slowly, apparently; I wonder if any benefit has been shown in, say, health care workers required to be immunized for these many decades (~40 years ago in my case).]
"Meanwhile, however, there is a growing problem with cirrhosis due to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), specifically nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). NASH, which typically develops in the setting of obesity, type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hypertension, appears to lead the list of risk factors for HCC in the United States.[2, 3] [Doh!] ...
"In general, cirrhosis of any etiology is the major risk factor for HCC.[16, 17] About 80% of patients with newly diagnosed HCC have preexisting cirrhosis. Major causes of cirrhosis in the United States are nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), alcohol abuse, hepatitis C infection, and [bringing up the rear, apparently] hepatitis B infection.[2] ...
"In the analysis of a large managed care database, the incidence of HCC linked to nonalcoholic fatty liver disease rose by 10 times from 0.03-0.46 per 100,000 between the years 1997 and 2005.[21] Currently, HCC non-alcoholic fatty liver disease has the greatest proportion of the burden of the main risk factors for HCC in the United States.[2, 3, 22] ...
"The global prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection was estimated to be 296 million persons in 2019[23] ; chronic HBV infection is the most common cause of HCC worldwide [no citation for this comment, I note]. In the United States, about 20% of HCC cases are thought to be related to chronic HBV infection. ...
"It is anticipated that with implementation of worldwide vaccination, the incidence of hepatitis B–related HCC will decrease. In a study from Taiwan, where universal hepatitis B vaccination in newborns and children was instituted in 1984, the average annual incidence of HCC per 100,000 children age 6-14 years declined from 0.70 in 1981-1986 to 0.36 in 1990-1994 (P< 0.01).[24] By the end of 2020, hepatitis B vaccine for infants had been introduced nationwide in 190 countries; in addition,113 countries had introduced one dose of hepatitis B vaccine to newborns within the first 24 hours of life, and the estimated global coverage was 42%, ranging from 6% in the World Health Organization (WHO) African region to 84% in the WHO Western Pacific Region.[25] [It'll be interesting to see what happens to HCC rates in African nations with low HBV vaccine uptake; like having a control group.] ...
"In the United States, liver cancer is the most rapidly increasing cancer in both men and women, with incidence rates more than tripling since 1980; from 2006 to 2015, the rate increased by about 3% per year. ... Liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancers are the fifth most common cause of cancer deaths in men in the US, and the seventh most common in women. ...
"Globally, the incidence of liver cancer among men and women who are younger than 30 years and those aged 30 to 59 years has declined, largely due to national hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination programs.[29, 30]
"By racial and ethnic group, rates are highest in Hispanics, followed by Asians/Pacific Islanders, then American Indians/Alaska Natives, blacks, and whites.[28] ...
"[In 2020, t]he incidence was highest in East Asia, at 17.9 per 100,000 population (26.9 in males and 8.9 in females), followed by Micronesia, northern Africa, Southeast Asia, and Melanesia. The incidence was lowest in south-central Asia (3.0 per 100,000) and South America (4.4 per 100,000). By comparison, the incidence rate was 6.9 per 100,00 in northern America and 5.6 per 100,000 in western Europe. Overall, the incidence rate of liver cancer is approximately three times higher in males than in females. Mortality figures mirror the incidence figures.[1] ...
"Steady declines in HCC mortality are predicted for East Asia. In contrast, Northern and Central Europe, North America, and Latin America are showing unfavorable trends.[32] According to an analysis of data from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study, the number of liver cancer cases increased nearly threefold in older men and more than twofold in older women (aged 60 years or more) from 1990 to 2017. The increase consisted mainly of cases secondary to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH; popularly known as fatty liver disease).[29, 30]" [looking forward to the educational programs on how to prevent and reduce metabolic syndrome, but since educational programs don't make money like vaccines or cancer treatments, I'm not holding my breath.]
As a parent of a child who never got a single needle, I can say it was a scary decision at the time but now that she's a teen I can look back and realise I have no regrets. Maybe we got lucky as she was never exposed to any of the 'dreaded' childhood diseases, but all I know is she never once struggled with fevers, ear infections, auto-immune issues or being on the spectrum, and I'm very thankful for that.