Australia, September 29: Australia parents have been told not to panic after a teenage girl died in the UK hours after being given the controversial cervical cancer vaccine.
The 14-year-old schoolgirl who died in hospital after receiving the Cervarix injection is the first reported death from the vaccine.
The batch of the vaccine used has been quarantined to test whether it is faulty or contaminated during production or distribution.
In Australia Cervarix has been approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration for use in females aged 10 to 45.
Australian Medical Association (AMA) president Andrew Pesce said Australia’s school vaccination program used rival vaccine Gardasil. Cervarix was not funded by the Government in Australia and was only sometimes used in older women.
Mr Pesce said the schoolgirl’s death was not a cause for panic.
“She could have died from a heart attack, the facts are still unclear, we need to wait for results of diagnosis and autopsy to see if this is a true vaccine related death,” Mr Pesce said.
“If it is then we need to know what caused it and what the risks are.”
Mr Pesce said the death needed to be kept in perspective.
“We are preventing hundreds of deaths by using these vaccines, the results may not show up for 30 years, but it is working.”
According to PapScreen Victoria tests of the vaccine in Australia showed only minor problems. Some people have had a slight fever; others experienced redness or irritation on their skin at the site of injection.
But a check of the Cervarix product information from manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline reveals side effects such as muscle pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and joint pain are as common as one in 10.
In the UK, where Cervavix has been chosen for a national immunisation program, the vaccination is under review after 1500 Britons experienced adverse reactions.
Girls have suffered paralysis, convulsions, sight problems and heat intolerance. Nausea, muscle weakness, fever, dizziness and numbness have also been reported.
Critics say the case highlights the risks of mass vaccination, because no testing regime can ever pick up the rarest and potentially most lethal side effects.
In a statement posted on the girl’s school website, headteacher Dr Julie Roberts said during the immunisation, “one of the girls suffered a rare, but extreme reaction to the vaccine”.
“A number of other girls also reported being unwell and some were sent home,” she said.
“If your daughter has received a vaccine today we ask that you are extra vigilant regarding any signs or symptoms.”
NHS Coventry Director Dr Caron Grainger offered her sympathies to the girl’s family and friends.
She said: “The incident happened shortly after the girl had received her HPV vaccine in the school. No link can be made between the death and the vaccine until all the facts are known and a post-mortem takes place.
“We are conducting an urgent and full investigation into the events surrounding this tragedy.”
Dr Pim Kon, medical director at GlaxoSmithKline UK said: “Our deepest sympathies are with the family and friends of the young girl.
“We are working with the Department of Health and MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) to better understand this case, as at this stage the exact cause of this tragic death is unknown.”
Cervarix protects against two strains of human papillomavirus (HPV) that cause more than 70 per cent of cases of cervical cancer in women.
—Agencies