Rogue cervical cancer jab fears after girl,14, dies and three classmates are taken ill

Daily Mail | September 28, 2009

A girl of 14 died yesterday hours after being given the cervical cancer vaccine at her school.

The pupil, who attended the Blue Coat Church of England School in Coventry, died in hospital after receiving the Cervarix jab.

The tragedy is the first reported death in Britain since the national vaccination programme began last September, with more than 1.5million doses given to girls.

Last night an urgent investigation began to establish the exact cause of the death. It is not yet known whether the girl had an extreme - and very rare - reaction to a standard vaccine, or whether the particular dose she was given was from a rogue contaminated batch.

A number of the dead girl's classmates have reported alleged side-effects from the jab, ranging from dizziness to nausea.

Last night, the head of Blue Coat School, Dr Julie Roberts, sent a letter home to parents. She told them 'an unfortunate incident occurred and one of the girls suffered a rare, but extreme reaction to the vaccine'.

She urged them to be 'extra vigilant regarding any signs or symptoms'.

It is not known how soon after the jab that the girl became ill or whether she collapsed at school or home.

A post mortem will take place to determine the exact cause of her death.

The vaccine batch used at the school has been quarantined to test whether it is faulty or was contaminated during production or distribution.

Although other girls at the school, a mixed specialist music college with 1,400 pupils, suffered from dizziness and nausea after the jab it is understood that none have needed hospital treatment.

Critics say the tragedy highlights the risks of mass vaccination because no testing regime can detect the rarest and potentially most lethal side effects.

Last night there were calls for the entire cervical cancer vaccination programme to be suspended. But the Department of Health refused to say whether it would go ahead for the tens of thousands of girls due to receive the jab in the months ahead.

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