KIA ORA. GOOD EVENING. TONIGHT ` THE VACCINATION TO HELP PREVENT CERVICAL CANCER. IT'S BEEN ON OFFER HERE SINCE 2008, AND MORE THAN 200,000 NZ GIRLS HAVE HAD IT. THE SCIENTISTS SAY IT'S SAFE, BUT IN TONIGHT'S 3D INVESTIGATES, PAULA PENFOLD HEARS FROM GIRLS AND THEIR FAMILIES WITH SERIOUS DOUBTS. THEY WANT TO KNOW WHETHER GARDASIL IS TO BLAME FOR WHAT'S HAPPENED TO THEM. IN TWO CASES, THAT WAS SUDDEN, UNEXPLAINED DEATH. IN OTHERS, CRIPPLING ILLNESS. ARE THESE FAMILIES RIGHT TO BE CONCERNED, OR IS SCIENCE ON THE VACCINE'S SIDE? PENSIVE MUSIC (CRIES) FOUR NZ GIRLS, UNCONNECTED, EXCEPT FOR THE FACT THAT THEY'RE SICK. I COULDN'T MOVE. I WAS IN SO MUCH PAIN IF I MOVED. WHAT KIND OF PAIN? WHAT DID IT FEEL LIKE FOR YOU? UM, LIKE SOMEBODY WAS STABBING ME. I WAS IN EXTREME PAIN AND TINGLINESS. WHAT KIND OF PAIN IS IT? ACHY AND SHARP. I STARTED DEVELOPING CONSTANT NAUSEA AND HEADACHES. AND THEN IT STARTED THROBBING, AND THEN IT STARTED TINGLING. MY LEGS JUST DIDN'T FEEL CONNECTED TO MY HIPS SOME DAYS. AND THEN THE BODY PAIN STARTED. A STARK CONTRAST TO THE WAY THEY ONCE WERE ` FIT, HEALTHY, ACTIVE IN SPORT, SKIING, WATERSKIING, NETBALL, DANCING AND CHEERLEADING. BUT ALL OF THAT CHANGED. WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE CAUSE OF ALL OF THIS? GARDASIL. GARDASIL. GARDASIL. WHY? BECAUSE I WAS A HEALTHY CHILD BEFORE THIS. EVERY TIME I HAD A SHOT, IT GOT WORSE. FOOD ALLERGIES AND THEN ALL THE OTHER SYMPTOMS JUST FOLLOWED. THE FIRST TIME I HAD A VIRUS, AND I COULDN'T MOVE MY LIMBS. AS SOON AS I HAD THIS, EVERYTHING CAME CRASHING DOWN. PAINS IN MY CHEST SO BAD THAT I WAS IN THE FOETAL POSITION. EVERYTHING WOULD START TO HURT, LIKE MY KNEES, MY BACK. I HAD A SWOLLEN BRAIN, WHICH STILL HASN'T REALLY GONE AWAY. IT'S A BIG LIST OF SYMPTOMS. YEAH. COULD IT BE A COINCIDENCE? I DON'T THINK SO. BUT IT'S TOUGH TO MAKE THAT CONCLUSION, ISN'T IT,... YEAH. BECAUSE THERE'S NO SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE? YEAH. I THINK IT'S REALLY HARD, BECAUSE NO ONE CAN PROVE IT, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S A COINCIDENCE THAT THERE'S ALL THESE GIRLS WITH ALL THE SAME SYMPTOMS AS ME, NOT JUST IN NZ BUT ALL AROUND THE WORLD, SO I THINK IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE TRIGGER TO WHAT I HAVE. HI. I'M HINE TAPORA. I'M GOING TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT BEING IMMUNISED AGAINST HPV. GARDASIL WAS FIRST APPROVED BY THE FDA IN 2006 AND HAS BEEN AVAILABLE IN NZ FOR SEVEN YEARS, MOSTLY GIVEN THROUGH SCHOOLS TO GIRLS IN YEAR 8, COSTING AROUND $8.7 MILLION A YEAR. AND THERE'S NO ARGUMENT THAT WHAT GARDASIL AIMS TO COUNTER IS A SERIOUS DISEASE. HUMAN PAPILLOMA VIRUS MAY EVENTUALLY LEAD TO CERVICAL CANCER, WHICH KILLS ABOUT 50 NZ WOMEN A YEAR. AND OF THE 200,000 OR SO GIRLS AND YOUNG WOMEN WHO'VE HAD GARDASIL HERE SO FAR, FOR THE VAST MAJORITY, THERE HAVE BEEN NO PROBLEMS. BUT THERE HAVE BEEN 478 CASES OF ADVERSE REACTIONS CONSIDERED TO BE RELATED TO GARDASIL. THE DOCTORS FOR THESE GIRLS CAN'T TELL THEM THE CAUSE OF THEIR ILLNESSES. WHAT IS CLEAR IS THAT THEIR LIVES HAVE BEEN DRASTICALLY CHANGED. WHAT HAS IT BEEN LIKE FOR YOU, OLIVIA, GOING FROM BEING A REALLY FIT, ACTIVE, HEALTHY GIRL TO BEING IN A WHEELCHAIR WITH ALL THIS PAIN? YEAH, IT'S REALLY REALLY HARD. AT THE START, I JUST COULDN'T COME TO TERMS WITH IT. I WAS JUST THINKING, 'THIS IS SO UNFAIR,' LIKE, 'WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?' HOW'S YOUR MOBILITY? HOW ARE YOU GETTING AROUND? I'M IN A WHEELCHAIR. DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU'RE GETTING ANY BETTER YET? I THINK PEOPLE CAN SEE ME GET BETTER, BUT INSIDE I DON'T REALLY FEEL LIKE I'M GETTING BETTER. HOW ARE YOU GOING TO THE BATHROOM, HAVING A SHOWER, THAT KIND OF THING? I CAN'T TOUCH ANY WATER AT THE MOMENT. CAN'T TOUCH WATER? WHY NOT? BECAUSE IT HURTS MY SKIN TOO MUCH. EVEN A SHOWER HURTS YOUR SKIN? WHEN YOU'VE BEEN AT YOUR LOWEST POINTS, WHAT'S BEEN GOING THROUGH YOUR HEAD? THAT THIS IS GONNA HAPPEN ALL THE TIME, AND I'M NEVER GOING TO GET BETTER, AND, LIKE, I'M GONNA HAVE THIS WHEN I'M OLDER. WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE BEING YOU, LIVING THAT LIFE? IT'S REALLY BORING. I HATE IT. I MISS GOING TO SCHOOL. I STILL TALK TO MY FRIENDS, BUT I DON'T SEE THEM AS OFTEN. HOW ARE YOU COPING MENTALLY? TEARFULLY: I'M ALL RIGHT. ARE YOU? OH, GOOD GIRL. BUT NOT REALLY? NO. THEIR SYMPTOMS AND CONCERNS ARE NOT JUST BEING RAISED HERE; THEY'RE BEING ECHOED INTERNATIONALLY, MOST RECENTLY IN THIS DANISH DOCUMENTARY. THE MEDICAL PROFESSION ARE PROTECTING THE PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES. AND JUST LAST MONTH IN THE IRISH PARLIAMENT, THIS FROM AN OPPOSITION SENATOR. WHAT I HAVE GOT HERE ARE TESTIMONIALS FROM YOUNG GIRLS BETWEEN 12 AND 17 ACROSS IRELAND WHO HAVE BEEN CONFINED TO THEIR BEDS ALL BECAUSE OF THIS VACCINATION. THIS IS AN APPALLING` AN APPALLING VISTA. I COULDN'T BELIEVE WHAT I WAS LISTENING TO. AND THE MORE I'VE DELVED INTO THIS, THE MORE I BELIEVE THAT IT IS A NATIONAL DISGRACE. BUT IS THERE ANY SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE? WELL, YES, THERE'S SCREEDS OF RESEARCH USED BY BOTH SIDES TO BACK UP THEIR POSITIONS. THE LATEST IS FROM THE EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY, WHICH ON FRIDAY REPORTED BACK THE RESULTS OF A MAJOR SAFETY REVIEW, CONCLUDING THAT THE TWO REPORTED SIDE EFFECTS IT WAS INVESTIGATING ARE NOT CAUSED BY GARDASIL; THAT THEY WOULD OCCUR AT THE SAME RATE WITHOUT THE VACCINATION. SO THE OFFICIAL POSITION HERE IS THAT THE BENEFIT OUTWEIGHS ANY RISKS, WHICH THE PARENTS OF ALL OF THE GIRLS WE SPOKE TO ACCEPTED. NONE HAD ANY QUALMS ABOUT SIGNING THE CONSENT FORM. NONE ARE WHAT YOU'D CALL 'ANTI-IMMUNISATION'. BOTH MY KIDS WERE FULLY IMMUNISED ALL THE WAY THROUGH. YOU'RE NOT ANTI-VACCINATION? NOT AT ALL. DID YOU GIVE MUCH THOUGHT TO WHETHER OR NOT BRIAR SHOULD GET THE GARDASIL INJECTION? NO. YOUR CHILDREN HAD THEIR VACCINATIONS GROWING UP? YES, BRIAR'S HAD ALL HER VACCINATIONS ON TIME. SO YOU'RE NOT ANTI-IMMUNISATION? NO. I HAVE ACTUALLY HAD CERVICAL CANCER MYSELF, AND TO THIS DAY, I KICK MYSELF, BECAUSE, NO, I SIGNED IT, AND IF I'D KNOWN HALF OF WHAT I KNOW NOW, I WOULD NEVER HAVE GONE NEAR IT. BUT COULD IT BE WORSE THAN CLAIMED SIDE EFFECTS? INTERNATIONALLY, THERE ARE CONCERNS GARDASIL COULD BE LINKED WITH DEATHS, AND NOW THAT CONCERN IS BEING RAISED HERE TOO. PENSIVE MUSIC SARAH CURRAN WAS A PRETTY TYPICAL TEENAGER, 16 YEARS OLD, ELDER SISTER TO DANIELLE, DAUGHTER TO HIGH-SCHOOL SWEETHEARTS JODEE AND MIKE. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE SARAH? WHAT KIND OF GIRL WAS SHE? UM, LOOK, I THINK SARAH WAS KIND OF YOUR NORMAL 16-YEAR-OLD TEENAGER. SHE WAS WELL LOVED. SHE HAD LOTS OF FRIENDS. THE CURRANS ARE AN ACTIVE FAMILY, AND SARAH WAS PHYSICALLY HEALTHY ` 'VERY NORMAL', AS HER PARENTS DESCRIBE HER ` UNTIL ONE DECEMBER MORNING TWO YEARS AGO WHEN SARAH HADN'T EMERGED FROM BED. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME HER PARENTS HAVE SPOKEN PUBLICLY ABOUT HER DEATH. TELL ME ABOUT THAT MORNING WHEN SARAH DIDN'T COME OUT OF HER ROOM. SHE WAS JUST, YEAH, NO MOVEMENT, NO NOTHING, AND SO... (EXHALES) I WENT DOWN, AND IT WAS JUST LIKE SHE WAS STILL ASLEEP, BUT SHE WAS COLD. AND, REALLY, THERE'S... THERE'S NOTHING THAT CAN PREPARE YOU FOR THAT. YOU DON'T SEE IT OR PLAN FOR IT. UM, IT'S... YEAH, SOMETHING THAT` THAT WILL ALWAYS REMAIN IN MY MEMORY, ANYWAY, WAS THE PHONE CALL NO ONE SHOULD GET. SEAGULLS SQUAWK THE CURRANS HAVE TO MAKE NEW MEMORIES NOW, WITHOUT SARAH. HER SUDDEN DEATH AS AN APPARENTLY HEALTHY 16-YEAR-OLD GIRL WAS HIGHLY UNUSUAL, OF COURSE, SO THERE WAS AN AUTOPSY, BUT NO OBVIOUS CAUSE OF DEATH WAS FOUND. TOXICOLOGY WAS NORMAL, NO SIGN OF DRUGS OR ALCOHOL. HISTOLOGY WAS NORMAL, NO SIGN OF DISEASE; HEART AND ARTERIES, ALL NORMAL. SEAGULL SQUAWKS SO HER FAMILY WAS ADVISED TO UNDERGO TESTS THEMSELVES TO SEE IF THERE WAS ANY UNDERLYING GENETIC CARDIAC PROBLEM. NOTHING WAS FOUND. SO, WHAT EXPLANATION DO YOU HAVE? > WELL, IT'S DOWN AS A... UM... 'UNKNOWN NATURAL CAUSES', I GUESS, IS WHAT'S WRITTEN ON THE FINAL REPORT, BUT IT'S PRETTY UNUSUAL WHEN A` WHAT WE CALL A NORMAL 16-YEAR-OLD GIRL DOES GO TO BED AND DOESN'T WAKE UP IN THE MORNING. AND SO SARAH'S DEATH, AS YOU WOULD EXPECT, WAS REFERRED TO THE CORONER, BUT THE CORONER DECIDED NOT TO HOLD AN INQUEST, SAYING HE'S SATISFIED SHE DIED OF NATURAL CAUSES. SO WHAT COULD CAUSE A 16-YEAR-OLD GIRL TO DIE IN HER SLEEP? WELL, HERE'S SOMETHING WORTH EXPLORING, YOU'D THINK ` SARAH HAD HAD A GARDASIL INJECTION THAT DAY. WHAT WAS THE TIMING? > UM, I THINK SHE'D HAD` IT WAS HER SECOND GARDASIL INJECTION, AND I THINK IT WAS 10 O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING. THE MEDICAL REPORTS AFTER SARAH'S DEATH STATE THE VACCINE IS 'WELL TOLERATED' AND THAT ANAPHYLAXIS, AN ACUTE ALLERGIC REACTION WHICH HAS BEEN REPORTED IN ABOUT THREE CASES PER MILLION, WASN'T DETECTED AT POST-MORTEM. IT'S HARD FOR ME, BECAUSE SHE HAD THAT MEDICAL PROCEDURE THAT DAY THAT SHE DIED AND DID NOTHING ELSE THAT WAS DIFFERENT. TO JUST SAY THAT IT WAS A COINCIDENCE IS HARD, BUT AS MIKE SAID, THERE'S` HOW DO WE FIND OUT FOR SURE? SO WHAT WE CAN'T SAY IS THAT THE INJECTION THAT SARAH HAD CAUSED HER DEATH, PURELY BECAUSE THERE ISN'T A TESTING AVAILABLE TO PROVE THAT ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, BUT WHAT WE CAN SAY IS THAT WE'VE HAD LOTS OF OTHER TESTS DONE, AND THEY'VE ALL COME BACK AS BEING PERFECTLY NORMAL. WHAT DO YOU THINK? DO YOU THINK GARDASIL DID HAVE A PART TO PLAY IN YOUR DAUGHTER'S DEATH? I DON'T KNOW. I CAN'T SAY WHETHER I PARTICULARLY FEEL THAT THAT DID OR IT DIDN'T, BUT IT'S CERTAINLY ONE THING THAT WAS DIFFERENT THAT DAY COMPARED TO ANY OTHER DAY. YES, IT DOES. IT'S A PRETTY BIG THING TO GET WRONG WHEN YOU GET IT WRONG, ISN'T IT? UM, I WOULD HATE TO THINK THAT THIS DIDN'T GO UNEXPLORED AND THAT SOMEBODY ELSE WOULD BE IN THIS POSITION. IT'S DEVASTATING. AS ONE DOCTOR PUT IT TO US, 'WHEN A NORMAL HEALTHY GIRL DIES THE SAME DAY AS HAVING A MEDICAL PROCEDURE, ANY MEDICAL PROCEDURE, 'THEN IT SHOULD GO WITHOUT SAYING THAT THAT PROCEDURE SHOULD BE CALLED INTO QUESTION.' WITHOUT AN INQUEST, THERE'S BEEN NO INVESTIGATION INTO WHETHER THERE'S ANY CONNECTION BETWEEN GARDASIL AND SARAH CURRAN'S DEATH. IT HAS BEEN REPORTED TO THE CENTRE FOR ADVERSE REACTIONS MONITORING, AND IN INFORMATION WE'VE OBTAINED, IT SAYS THAT IT 'CAREFULLY REVIEWS ANY REPORT OF DEATH WITH VACCINES, 'AND THIS ONE WILL UNDERGO SUCH CONSIDERATION.' SO WHAT'S HAPPENED TO SARAH'S REVIEW? MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT THE CASE HAS BEEN CONSIDERED, AND A DECISION HAS BEEN MADE AS TO WHETHER IT WAS` WHETHER WE WERE ABLE TO ATTRIBUTE A VACCINATION TO IT OR NOT, AND WE WILL HAVE CLASSIFIED THIS CASE AS BEING EITHER IN THE NEGATIVE ` NO, WE DON'T BELIEVE IT'S ASSOCIATED ` OR B) IT'S UNCLASSIFIABLE, WHICH MEANS WE CANNOT MAKE A DETERMINATION. SO YOU DON'T KNOW WHICH ONE OF THOSE TWO POSSIBILITIES IT IS? I DON'T KNOW, BUT I'M SURE WE CAN GET YOU THE ANSWER TO THAT. WE WOULD APPRECIATE THAT ANSWER. YUP. A WEEK LATER THE MINISTRY CAME BACK TO US AND ADMITTED THAT IN THE TWO YEARS SINCE SARAH CURRAN DIED, THAT REVIEW HAS NEVER HAPPENED, BUT IT ALSO SAYS, IN THE SAME RESPONSE, THAT IT CONSIDERS HER DEATH IS UNLIKELY TO HAVE BEEN CAUSED BY THE HPV VACCINATION. BUT HOW CAN THAT BE THE CONCLUSION WHEN THE PROMISED REVIEW NEVER OCCURRED? WHICH LEAVES HER FAMILY IN THE DREADFUL POSITION OF NOT ONLY DEALING WITH THEIR LOSS BUT ALSO HAVING NO EXPLANATION AS TO WHAT CAUSED IT. YOU HAVE A YOUNGER DAUGHTER. WILL SHE GET THE GARDASIL VACCINATION? > NO. I, UM` I CAN'T TAKE THAT CHANCE. UM, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S SOMETHING THAT WAS IN SARAH'S GENETIC MAKE-UP THAT MAYBE REACTED TO THE GARDASIL THAT DANIELLE HAS OR... I JUST CAN'T DO IT. THERE HAS BEEN AN INQUEST, THOUGH, INTO THE DEATH OF ANOTHER NZ GIRL, WHOSE FAMILY IS CONVINCED GARDASIL IS TO BLAME. JASMINE HAD HER FIRST CERVICAL CANCER VACCINATION, WHICH WAS A GARDASIL INJECTION. SO WHAT HAS IT FOUND, AND WHAT ARE OUR HEALTH AUTHORITIES DOING ABOUT THESE QUESTIONS OVER WHETHER THIS VACCINE THEY'RE PROMOTING IS SAFE? SHE PASSED AWAY SIX MONTHS AFTER THE LAST VACCINATION WAS GIVEN. IT'S BEEN ON OFFER HERE SINCE 2008, AND MORE THAN 200,000 NZ GIRLS HAVE HAD IT. PENSIVE MUSIC JASMINE RENATA'S PARENTS SAY SHE STARTED TO BECOME UNWELL MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY AT THE END OF SEPTEMBER 2008, AND THAT COINCIDED WITH THE TIME SHE BEGAN RECEIVING HER GARDASIL VACCINATIONS. SHE HAD HEADACHES AND DIZZY SPELLS, NAUSEA AND OCCASIONAL MEMORY LOSS. SHE HAD FEET, LEG AND BACK PAIN, AS WELL AS ACHING JOINTS. SHE WAS TIRED ALL THE TIME, AND ONE NIGHT SHE COMPLAINED OF CHEST PAINS AND SAID HER HEART WAS RACING. THREE WEEKS LATER, SHE DIED IN HER SLEEP. ON THE 22ND SEPTEMBER 2009, AT ABOUT 5.30PM, POLICE ATTENDED A DEATH OF JASMINE NICOLE RENATA. AS IN SARAH'S CASE, THE CAUSE OF JASMINE'S DEATH WAS UNASCERTAINED, BUT UNLIKE IN SARAH'S CASE, THERE WAS AN INQUEST, WHICH WE FILMED, AND AT WHICH JASMINE'S FAMILY'S CONCERN THAT THERE WAS A CONNECTION TO GARDASIL WAS CANVASSED EXTENSIVELY. AT THAT TIME, MERCK'S CAUSALITY ASSESSMENT OF THIS CASE WAS 'CAUSALITY UNKNOWN'. MEDSAFE TESTIFIED THAT IT'S NOT POSSIBLE TO ASCERTAIN WHETHER OR NOT JASMINE'S DEATH WAS RELATED TO THE VACCINATION. MR AND MRS RENATA, YOU'VE BEEN AN AMAZING COUPLE OF PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN DETERMINED TO TRY AND FIND THE REASONS FOR YOUR DAUGHTER'S DEATH, SO, LOOK, MY CONDOLENCES TO YOU AS A FAMILY, > MY CONGRATULATIONS ON THE PROCESS AND THE EFFORT THAT YOU HAVE TRULY PUT INTO THIS, AND I WISH MORE PEOPLE WERE LIKE THAT, AND I WISH YOU ALL THE BEST FOR THE FUTURE. SADLY, CORONER SMITH DIED IN OCTOBER LAST YEAR BEFORE HE WAS ABLE TO ISSUE HIS FINDINGS. ANOTHER CORONER IS COMPLETING THE INQUEST, THOUGH, AWAITING RESPONSES TO HIS PROVISIONAL FINDING, WHICH IS THAT THE CAUSE OF DEATH IS UNASCERTAINED. SO WHERE DOES THIS LEAVE THE FAMILIES WHO THINK GARDASIL IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR DAUGHTERS' ILLNESSES AND POSSIBLY THEIR DEATHS? PENSIVE MUSIC FOR THOSE PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE THAT GARDASIL IS THE CAUSE OF THE CHRONIC PAIN THAT THEY'RE LIVING WITH, WHAT DO YOU SAY TO THEM? THAT ACTUALLY THE ISSUE IS ` WHAT DO YOU DO NEXT? HOW DO YOU`? WELL, WHAT DO THEY DO NEXT? AND YOU SEEK THE MEDICAL CARE THAT'S APPROPRIATE FOR THEIR CONDITION. AND WHEN THEY DO` THE EXPERIENCE OF THE FAMILIES THAT WE'RE DEALING WITH IS THAT WHEN THEY DO SEEK THE MEDICAL CARE, A) THERE'S NO` IF THEY GET A DIAGNOSIS, AND THAT USUALLY TAKES A WHILE` < IF THEY GET A DIAGNOSIS, THERE'S NO CAUSE FOR THE DIAGNOSIS GIVEN, MAYBE THAT'S BECAUSE THERE CAN'T BE A CAUSE GIVEN, BUT WHAT THEY ARE ALSO UNIVERSALLY FINDING IS THAT THE MINUTE THEY MENTION GARDASIL AS JUST A POSSIBILITY, THEY FEEL AS THOUGH THEY'RE LAUGHED OUT OF THE SURGERY. WELL, WE'RE BACK INTO ` IS THERE ANY EVIDENCE THAT THIS IS ASSOCIATED WITH GARDASIL THAT'S AVAILABLE AT THIS POINT OF TIME? AND THE ANSWER IS NO. THE CORRECT RESPONSE THAT WE WOULD ENCOURAGE BOTH FAMILIES AND DOCTORS TO PURSUE IS THAT THEY SHOULD REPORT THESE CASES TO THE CENTRE FOR ADVERSE REACTION MONITORING. AND IN THE MEANTIME, WE HAVE THIS ANECDOTAL EVIDENCE OF THE TYPE THAT WE'RE REFLECTING IN THIS PROGRAMME, < WHERE PATIENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES ARE CONVINCED THAT THERE IS A CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP < BETWEEN THEIR VACCINATION AND THE SYMPTOMS THAT THEY ARE EXPERIENCING. YUP. SO CAN YOU REASSURE THEM THAT IN 20 YEARS' TIME, WE WON'T LOOK BACK ON THE GARDASIL VACCINATION PROGRAMME AND SAY, 'THAT WAS AN UNFORTUNATE EXPERIMENT THAT WE PUT A GENERATION OF KIWI GIRLS THROUGH'? UM, I THINK` I` FOR ME, THIS IS ABOUT WHAT CAN THE FAMILY CONTRIBUTE TO THE TOTALITY OF KNOWLEDGE IN THIS AREA, AND SO THAT'S WHY I REALLY WANNA PUSH AGAIN THAT IF THEY FEEL THEIR DOCTOR'S NOT REPORTING, THEY SHOULD REPORT, BECAUSE THIS ADDS TO THE TOTALITY. ARE YOU CONFIDENT THAT IN 20 YEARS' TIME, WE WON'T LOOK BACK ON THIS VACCINATION PROGRAMME AND SAY, 'THAT WAS A MISTAKE. THERE WERE SERIOUS SIDE EFFECTS THAT WE DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT AT THE TIME'? WE HAVE NOW` WE'RE NOW, WHAT, EIGHT, NINE YEARS INTO THE VACCINATION PROGRAMME, 63 MILLION DOSES OF THIS VACCINE GIVEN GLOBALLY, EXTENSIVE CLINICAL STUDIES LOOKING AT A WHOLE RANGE OF ISSUES, WHICH HAVE NOT PICKED UP ANY SIGNIFICANT ISSUES AROUND AN AUTONOMIC DISEASE. IS THAT AN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT THAT THERE MIGHT BE` FOR A VERY SMALL MINORITY, THERE MIGHT BE PROBLEMS OF THE NATURE THAT WE ARE DISCUSSING? AS I SAID TO YOU, IT IS ALWAYS POSSIBLE, BECAUSE WE CAN NEVER TOTALLY EXCLUDE A NEGATIVE. WHEN YOU'RE IN THE MINORITY, IT'S NO COMFORT THAT AS A POPULATION, THE BENEFITS ARE SAID TO OUTWEIGH THE RISKS. THESE FOUR GIRLS WANT SOMETHING PROACTIVE TO HAPPEN ABOUT THEIR CASES. THEY WANT HEALTH AUTHORITIES TO LOOK AT THEIR LIVES AND TAKE NOTICE. TAWNI IS IN HER LAST YEAR OF SCHOOL ` NOT THAT SHE GOES. SHE'S HOMESCHOOLED NOW AND SAYS SHE SPENDS MOST OF HER LIFE ON THE COUCH. IS IT ISOLATING, BEING LIKE THIS? > DEFINITELY, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE OF THE ANXIETY. LIKE, IT'S GETTING BETTER, BUT I DEFINITELY GET ANXIOUS LEAVING THE HOUSE, COS IT'S LIKE, 'WHAT IF I GET SICK? WHAT IF I GET TIRED? WHAT IF I CAN'T DO THIS?' HOW MANY OTHER GIRLS ARE RUNNING AROUND LIKE MY DAUGHTER FOR FIVE YEARS OR FOUR YEARS NOT KNOWING WHAT IS CAUSING THIS, NOT HAVING AN ANSWER, NOT HAVING A DIAGNOSIS, NOT HAVING ANY RELIEF? WE WILL NEVER KNOW HOW MANY GIRLS ARE JUST QUIETLY LOSING THEIR TEENAGE YEARS STUCK IN A BEDROOM. 12-YEAR-OLD BRIAR IS NOW BACK AT SCHOOL. THERE ARE ASPECTS OF HER FORMER LIFE BEING RESUMED, BUT SHE SAYS AND THINKS THINGS THAT ARE UNEASY TO HEAR COMING FROM SOMEONE SO YOUNG. I FEEL LIKE I'M NEVER GOING TO GET BETTER AND I'M GONNA STAY LIKE THIS FOREVER. < AT THIS POINT THERE'S NO MEDICAL RECOGNITION OF A CAUSAL LINK BETWEEN THE GARDASIL INJECTION AND THE KINDS OF SYMPTOMS THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT. THERE IS NO LINK. THERE ABSOLUTELY IS A LINK. ALL THESE GIRLS CANNOT BE WRONG. (CLEARS THROAT) THEY'RE NOT ONE IN A MILLION. THERE IS HOPE, THOUGH, IN 16-YEAR-OLD OLIVIA, WHO IS GETTING BETTER. DURING HER RECOVERY AT A REHAB CENTRE, OLIVIA WOULD MAKE THIS HER DAILY CHALLENGE. BUT THIS IS 18 MONTHS SINCE SHE STARTED TO GET SICK AND WHEN THE DOCTORS WERE TELLING HER IT WAS PSYCHOSOMATIC. ONE DOCTOR I HAD JUST, BASICALLY, THOUGHT THE SYMPTOMS WERE ONLY, KIND OF, REAL TO ME. WHAT DID HE SAY? > UM, WELL, BECAUSE ALL OF THE TESTS CAME BACK NORMAL, HE JUST` HE JUST SAID, 'YOU CAN WALK, AND IF THERE WAS A FIRE, YOU'D RUN OUT OF HERE.' KATE ROBSON IS NOW OUT OF HOSPITAL BUT STILL IN PAIN. IT'S GOOD TO BE WALKING AGAIN. IT'S QUITE SORE, THOUGH. KATE HAS IMPROVED A LOT SINCE WE SAW HER A MONTH AGO. SHE WAS IN A WHEELCHAIR THEN. SHE'S WALKING NOW. BUT, DEB, WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT HER FUTURE? IT'S VERY SCARY, AND I'M JUST HOPING WE CAN GET THROUGH THIS AND... (EXHALES SHARPLY) SHE CAN HAVE A NORMAL LIFE SOON. YEAH. PENSIVE MUSIC CONTINUES WELL, WHATEVER THE CAUSE, IT IS A VERY SAD SITUATION FOR THOSE GIRLS. 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