Erin Morgan had the jab in June 2013. Three days later she collapsed and spent two weeks in intensive care.
Mums claim HPV vaccine left their daughters having seizures
29 SEP 2015
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Erin Morgan has suffered almost daily seizures for two years with Erin Egan suffering a seizure on the day she had the jab
Erin Morgan had the jab in June 2013. Three days later she collapsed and
spent two weeks in intensive care.
The family of a teenage girl left suffering mystery seizures for two years believe it was caused by the HPV jab.
Erin Morgan, 15, spent two weeks in the high dependency unit at Stepping Hill Hospital and has suffered almost daily seizures since.
Doctors have diagnosed her with Non Epileptic Attack Disorder (NEAD) - seizures brought on by stress or anxiety.
But Erin’s family say she is a confident, outgoing girl - and her problems started three days after she had a HPV vaccination in June 2013.
A former dancer who has performed on TV programme Street Dance Stars, Erin hopes to be a surgeon - but currently only attends school 60 per cent of the time and no longer goes to dance classes.
She says she regularly wakes feeling tired and with a headache - signs she is due to have a seizure, which sometimes leave her with memory loss.
Her family say the episodes started three days after the HPV jab at her school, Stockport Academy, when she was rushed to hospital after stopping breathing during a seizure at her Cheadle home.
Spending two weeks in HDU at Stepping Hill, she was transferred to Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital and is still under the care of a neurologist there.
Blood tests and scans have all come back normal with doctors unable to identify a physical cause of the seizures, believing them to be psychological.
Erin’s mum Kelly says the family have been left without answers.
She said: “Erin has always been a healthy child, she never had anything like this before.
“When she was in hospital I didn’t think I’d be coming home with my daughter.
“Doctors can’t tell us how long she will have these seizures for or if they will stop.
“We’ve been through hell and back.
“I feel guilty as a mother because it was a choice to have the vaccine and I chose for her to have it.
“I’m not saying to everybody don’t have the HPV jab, I’m saying please look into it.”
Erin, eldest of two brothers and three sisters who lives with mum Kelly and dad Gavin Flynn, said: “After I had the injection I had cold sweats and was poorly all weekend.
“I went into school on Monday feeling really unwell and remember my English teacher taking me out and holding onto a bannister.
“I don’t remember much about being in hospital except having hallucinations.
“Now I’ll feel tired with a headache all through the day and then have a fit.
“The fits are part of our life now and I’ve learned to manage them better. But I wish I’d not had the HPV injection.”
A spokesman Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, said they are unable to discuss Erin’s case due to patient confidentiality.
Mum Michelle Egan (pictured here with husband Shaun Egan)
Mum says daughter had violent seizure
A mum says she has had to watch her daughter ‘all the time’ since she suffered a seizure just hours she had her HPV vaccine.
Erin Egan, 12, had the vaccine on September 15 this year at Manchester Enterprise Academy in Wythenshawe.
She woke her family up during the night having a violent seizure and ‘foaming at the mouth’ with her eyes rolling back in her head, according to mum Michelle.
Erin was rushed to Wythenshawe Hospital by ambulance and kept in until the early hours of the next day.
She then slept for hours at a time in the days following and still complains of being tired.
Her family, from Wythenshawe, are currently awaiting an outpatient appointment with an epilepsy specialist.
Mum Michelle said: “The doctors at hospital said she had had an adverse reaction and filled out a yellow card about it.
“Since then she has slept for days and days.
“I’m watching her all the time now, scared to death that she is going to have another fit.
“Erin is one of a twin and neither her or her sister Caitlin are going to have the second injections.”
The Yellow Card reports
The Government says there has been 190 reports of suspected side effects to the HPV vaccine amongst ‘tens of thousands’ of girls vaccinated in Greater Manchester since 2008.
When a patient attends hospital feeling unwell soon after having a vaccination, a ‘yellow card’ report is generated.
Both Erin Morgan and Erin Egan had yellow cards generated when they attended hospital.
The rate for Greater Manchester puts an adverse reaction at around 0.01 per cent or less.
A spokeswoman for the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (HPRA) said: ”Vaccine safety is of paramount importance and under constant review.
“Our warning system, the Yellow Card Scheme, helps us to continuously monitor safety.
“It is important to note that a report of a suspected side effect via the Yellow Card Scheme does not prove that it was caused by the vaccine. Other factors such as underlying illness may also be responsible.
“The expected benefits of HPV vaccine far outweigh any known risks.
Seizures can occur naturally in adolescence, often without a clear cause.
“Given that around 90% of girls eligible for HPV vaccine have received at least one dose in the UK since 2008 it is inevitable that some will develop an illness following vaccination without the vaccine necessarily being the cause.
“Two large studies have found no evidence to suggest that HPV vaccine may be a cause of seizures or epilepsy.”
Vaccine has 'an excellent safety record'
Greater Manchester’s lead for screening and immunisation says the HPV vaccine has ‘an excellent safety record’ and is urging parents to take up the jab.
Dr Graham Wardman, consultant in screening and immunisation for Greater Manchester at Public Health England, said: “There are 3064 new cervical cancer diagnoses each year in the UK, sadly causing death in around 919 of these cases according to latest figures.
“We expect the major benefit of the vaccination programme – a decrease in cervical cancer, which peaks in women between 25 and 50 – will be seen in some years’ time.
“It’s estimated that around 400 lives could be saved every year in the UK as a result of the programme.
“The HPV vaccine has an excellent safety record and surveillance shows it has contributed to a significant decrease in rates of infection with the two main cancer-causing human papillomaviruses.
“More than 8 million doses of HPV vaccine have been given in the UK, with close to 90% of eligible teenagers vaccinated.
“With such high uptake, isolated reports of serious suspected side effects are to be expected.
“Every report is taken seriously and will remain under review by the MHRA. If new risks are confirmed, appropriate action will be taken to minimise such risks.”
What the HPV vaccine is meant to do?
The HPV vaccine is designed to give immunity to the two types of Human Papilloma Virus which cause more than 70 per cent of cervical cancer cases in the UK.
There are over 100 types of HPV with the most high risk ones able to cause cervical cancer through abnormal tissue growth.
The virus can also cause the sexually transmitted disease genital warts, and the vaccine protects against this too.
All girls aged 12-13 are currently offered the HPV jab at school, with two inoculations over a six to 24 month period.
Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women under 35, with 2,900 diagnosed every year.
It is estimated that the HPV vaccine could save 400 lives a year and offers protection against HPV for at least 20 years.
It is given to girls aged 12-13 because the vaccine is believed to be most effective before a person has been exposed to the HPV virus, most likely during sexual activity.
Before September 2014 all girls were given three vaccinations, this is now two.
However women and girls aged 15 or over are still advised to have three immunisations to ensure its effectiveness.