November 2nd, 2004

The Australian government is investigating a claim that the previous government released a polio vaccine in the 1960s that was known to be linked to mesothelioma and other similar cancers.

The Cancer Council, Australia, claims that the government knew of the dangers of the vaccine since the 1940s, but still knowingly released it for use in the 1960s. The vaccine was made using monkey tissues, and it was a monkey virus that was thought to be linked to the cancers. However, the link between the vaccine and human cancer has not been verified.

Tony Abbot, Federal Health Minister, has called for the investigation to now be carried out, and a spokesperson for the minister has confirmed that the safety of current vaccinations in not in question in any way.

Professor Alan Coates, CO of the Cancer Council, has stated that the virus is known to cause cancer in animals, but that there is no evidence to confirm that it does the same in humans. He stated: "If you look at the overview of all of the epidemiological studies that have tried to link exposure of this virus with incidents of human cancer there is no evidence."