Jasmine Renata – Lower Hutt, nr Wellington, North Island

Written by Hilary Butler, 14 January 2010

Jasmine was a very healthy girl, with no history of any health issues at all. After her first Gardasil vaccination (NJ02260) on18th September 2008 Jasmine broke out with warts on her hands, and her skin and moods changed. The warts were burned off on the 20th October, and didn’t come back. After the second vaccination (NJ11440) on 18th November, her moods were worse, and the warts were back within two weeks and were burned off on the 28th January 2009.  After Jasmine’s third vaccine (NJ11440) on 17th March 2009 like clockwork, within two weeks, the warts were back for yet a third time.  It should be noted that at the same time as the Gardasil vaccination, Jasmine was given Depo Provera (birth control) by her doctor.

But we all know, because we’ve all been told this… that Gardasil has nothing to do with development of either warts, or genital warts. We are told that they would have happened anyway. Yet the repeated eruption of the warts, three times, after each vaccine cannot be coincidence.  How many other girls have had this happen and been told it wasn’t related?

After each Gardasil vaccine, Jasmine’s mood and behaviour changed, but like all mothers of teenage children, Jasmine’s mother, Rhonda, put that down to stresses in Jasmine’s life, and perhaps those “social” things that teenagers chose not to talk about…. Every little symptom that Jasmine had, was smoothed away with a variety of possible causes. Her chest pains were brushed to one side.  Racing heart beats ignored.  The fact that she was waking up in bed with pillow sopping wet was considered at the time to be coincidental. The fact that she could no longer do simple tasks automatically, or make decisions was puzzling, and worrying, … but dismissed. That is until Jasmine died and the jigsaw was pieced together. Then the blindingly obvious hit everyone in the face.  Except the medical profession, so it would seem

.After Jasmine’s third Gardasil vaccination on 17^th March 2009 , Jasmine’s immune system really struggled to cope with anything. Pretty much immediately straight after it, Jasmine’s temperament became even more agitated and she was a lot snappier.  She complained every so often about a weak arm and tiredness during the day, but we thought that was her doing more shifts for other people than in the past.  She slept in the day, whenever possible.

However, the arm pain continued and she used to get pins and needles and tingling in her hands for no reason.  Jasmine started sleeping in, longer in the morning, and also going to sleep in the middle of the day before her afternoon shift.  She started dropping things.

She also started to eat more than normal, but wasn’t putting on weight.

From June 2009 onwards, Jasmine started to complain of feeling clumsy. She started saying things like, “God, I’m getting clumsy!” and she was knocking things over, and dropping stuff.  She complained that she was dropping things at work as well.  Her mood swings became more volatile.

About the same time, we started to notice that Jasmine’s thinking wasn’t right.  For instance, she asked me if I’d like her to grate some carrots.  I said Yes, please.  She got out the grater and the carrot, looked at me, and said, “Which way up does the grater go?”  Having grated carrots, cheese and stuff hundreds of times before, that was a surprise.  Even Jasmine would say something like, “Gee how dumb is that!”  This wasn’t a one-off.  In other little things too, where in the past she’d just do it, she didn’t seem to know how.  It was like re-teaching a child.

And then she’d ask me, ‘What should I do with my money this week?”  This was a girl who certainly knew what to do with her money in the past.  Looking back, it seems she’d just lose the plot occasionally. She stopped being able to make her own decisions or work out how to do simple things.   She was even asking me whether she should do other people’s shifts at work.  I got to the point where I thought, “This girl is losing her marbles… where is her decision making gone?  Why can’t she do simple things any more?”

Around May, Jasmine started to complain of sore legs, and a sore upper back.

In July, Jasmine intermittently complained of chest pain, and a racing heart.  We’d ask her if she was stressed but she said she wasn’t.  Her workmates have said that Jazz became very tired and grumpy.  She would snap at them, and complain about feeling unwell a lot of the time, and would talk about having to fit sleep around her shifts.

At the beginning of August, Jasmine got a cold.  Normally, her colds might last two days and she had never needed anything for them before this one, but this one just got worse, and worse.  She also complained of a sore achy back and abdominal pain. And the warts returned again. Jasmine’s cold never got better, and on 21^st September, the day before she died, she was still complaining of a runny nose which wouldn’t stop.  She also had quite a few headaches during that cold, and leading up to her death.  Her skin changed, with a lot more pimples than normal, which really upset her. Jasmine also talked about going to have more liquid nitrogen on the warts.

In a photo the day before she died, she didn’t look right.  Her hair was lanky and she was very tired.  But even so, she was constantly hungry and eating a lot more than normal.  Eating more than normal didn’t seem to fit with a constantly tired sick girl, who had had a cold for more than six weeks. Jasmine went downhill emotionally, physically and mentally, but no-one saw it for what it was, at the time because … “ these things don’t happen after Gardasil”.

Krystal Kahura, New Zealand

Story as told by her mother Chrissy Kahura

I made my daughter sit down and watch Close Up and the segment on Gardasil with me last week.  I wanted her to watch the programme because she went ahead and without my consent, received two HPV vaccinations during the latter part of 2009.  I was unaware at the time that these injections had been given as I was not informed due to her being 16 years of age.  It was really just to teach her that at 16 you need to make informed decisions.  However, I had no idea that it was myself who was going to get some answers.

Krystal was a vibrant, energetic, sporty, positive young woman at 16.  I remember her saying to me one afternoon after I picked her up from school about 12 months ago.  “Thank you Mum for having me”.  She has played rep Netball for the past 6 years as well as her Saturday team and includes herself in Basketball, Touch, Swimming and generally anything that is being played.

Health wise everything deteriorated rapidly for her mid November 2009 although she had been suffering from mild forms for several weeks prior they weren’t anything like we were about to experience.  These ailments now ranged from extremely severe migraines, muscle aches and pains, cold sweats, temperatures, nausea, lack of appetite, extreme fatigue and extreme moods.  She also could not think clearly and did some bizarre things which were totally out of character for her.  She did complain once of tingling in her hands.  Her lack of attendance at school had me at the point where I didn’t ring the school anymore to inform them.  She also did not sit her two exams either in December.

She became very hostile and totally unreasonable to deal with.  I even mentioned to friends and family that I would gladly have a houseful of teenagers any day than deal with what I have in the house at the moment.  If she wasn’t sleeping off an aggressive migraine, she was sleeping because she was so exhausted.  I honestly thought she was going through a “teenage itis” period, only this was an extreme one.  Prior to her becoming unwell Krystal did suffer from migraines but they were manageable, these other ones were not.  I use the word extreme as everything she suffered from completely knocked her flat.  Several times I checked in on her when she was sleeping just to make sure she was still alive.  She wouldn’t even do simple jobs around the house.  Around Christmas 2009 Krystal asked if she could find some Happy Pills and I agreed to this as she was showing all the signs of severe depression and I was at a loss to help her.  She would tell me on several occasions she couldn’t eat and hadn’t for two days.  Krystal was given Citalopram hydrobromide Ta 20mg by her doctor on the 8 Jan 2010.  She was taking 3 a day for approximately 2 weeks then stopped as she couldn’t tolerate them anymore.  I tried to explain to her to only take one but was ignored.  I tried to get her to see someone to talk about whatever was bothering her but she refused. Krystal also had a Rep Netball Camp mid January to attend but could not go to this as by this time there were little signs she was slowly recovering but still too unwell to participate.

Now after watching Close Up, it all fits.  The injections given all match up with her health decline and her refusal to speak to someone because there was “nothing” wrong.  By nothing I mean a situation causing her to become depressed, only a reaction to the vaccination triggering a downward spiral of her health.  As we had no idea that this was the case, we assumed there were situations in Krystal’s life that she was unable to control or as the doctor puts it “unresolved issues” but looking back, I do believe the medical profession do not want to make the connection between HPV and serious health problems, it is far easier to put it down to unresolved issues that is causing depression in an otherwise fit and healthy young lady.

The vaccination may be a trigger in distorting thoughts as well.

It scares me to think what may have happened had we not seen this programme and I thank Rhonda and Stevie for speaking up and making us aware.  Krystal was due for her third injection and I have now made the Nurse put an alert on the computer and under no circumstances is she to receive this.  Krystal may have been another statistic.  I believe they have saved her life and my heart and prayers go out to Rhonda.

Kahlia’s Story in Her Own Words

On the 27th of January, I had my first vaccination against cervical cancer. I started to experience headaches and nausea, which I did not put down to the vaccine at first. Over the next three weeks, I experienced uncontrollable mood swings, fatigue, insomnia, and clumsiness. I passed out a week before I was actually admitted to the hospital.

On the night of the 27th of February, I was taken to the hospital because I had tight, stabbing chest pains, shortness of breath, and headaches. My left leg had started spasming and I had a heavy feeling on my left side,. After x-rays, ECG and blood tests all came back clear, I was sent home.

When I awoke on the morning of March 1st, I had a numb, heavy feeling in my left cheek and left arm. I pulled back the covers to see that my left leg was swollen and bright purple. When I crawled out of bed, I realized I couldn’t lift my leg or bend my knee. My mother took me to the doctors, who then called an ambulance. My left leg was 3 cm bigger in circumference than the other one, and hypersensitive. They suspected a blood clot. The hospital  I went to wanted to send me home, yet again, but my mother put her foot down.

I was admitted to the hospital on the morning of the 2nd of March, not realizing I would be there for a month. During my stay, I had every possible test related to my symptoms; symptoms that were rapidly changing. My leg was now freezing cold.

After a week and a half in the general ward, I was moved to rehabilitation. Slowly, with an increase in pain medication, I was able to regain a little mobility back. However, I had many setbacks.

My symptoms seem to repeat within my menstrual cycle, worse at certain points during the cycle. In April, my left eye dried up — a new symptom for me.

I was discharged from the hospital with causes ‘unknown.’ My mum had researched Gardasil throughout my hospital stay. She found all symptoms related to what I had been experiencing. We suggested Gardasil as a cause to the doctors.

They will not say it is 100% the cause because they cannot prove it. On the other hand, they can’t say it’s not 100% the cause because they cannot prove that either.

It took me three months to begin thinking about returning to school. Most days I feel nauseated and tired. Every cervical cancer vaccine ad I see or hear makes me angry.

I am a young 17 year old who is usually bubbly, positive and outgoing. Now, I am too scared to go into public places or be around people because I fret the questions, looks and thoughts. This has definitely ruined my life and needs to be stopped.