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The subject of circumcision was covered in the ABC TV's excellent
science series," Catalyst", telecast on June 20, 2002
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| Reviewed / Amended: March 2004 |
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Prof Brian Morris: Worldwide, millions of lives will be saved, absolutely will be saved if circumcision is practiced routinely on populations. Prof Brian Morris: It was never my intention to be the biggest campaigner for circumcision in Australia. Really, I'm a campaigner for science. Narration: Professor Brian Morris' science is the detection of viruses. Ten years ago, he began to suspect circumcision might play a role in preventing viral infections. |
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Narration: At least in developing countries, it began to look as though circumcised men were less likely to catch the AIDS virus. Professor Morris says one possible reason is that the foreskin makes the uncircumcised penis more vulnerable to viral attack.
Prof Brian Morris: OK this is the skin from the penis. What we've got here is skin from most of the penis and also the skin that's on the outside of the foreskin. You can see the protective keratin layer is very thick and this stops viruses getting in.
Narration: In contrast, the inner lining of the foreskin is a mucosal surface and the keratin is absent
Reporter: It's really quite striking. So you're saying that that's the main point of entry of the virus?
Prof Brian Morris: Absolutely, yeah, this is where the virus gets in the body. It's a weak point. And so the foreskin has this weakness that allows viruses to enter.
Narration: Now it seems, not only may the foreskin be a threat to men, but also to women. This is the New England Journal of Medicine, April 2002 edition. Inside is a report by one of the world's top medical research groups. It found that women were more likely to have cervical cancer if their partners were uncircumcised. The reason? Well, the same study found uncircumcised men were more likely to carry the human papilloma virus. And human papilloma virus is the cause of 99% of cervical cancers. Around 10 - 30% of Australian women are infected by the virus. Most do not go on to develop cancer.
Brian Morris (Email:Brianm@physiol.usyd.edu.au)
Professor of Physiology
University of Sydney
Basic & Clinical Genomics Laboratory
Depart of Physiology & Insitute for Biomedical Research
NSW Australian 2006
Related Site:
Brian Morris's web page on circumcision http://www.circinfo.net
