Side Effects from Cervical Cancer Vaccine in Valencia Spain

Some cervical cancer vaccines were withdrawn following the side effects suffered by two 14-year old girls in Valencia Spain. One of the girls was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of the Hospital Clínico in the city. The other girl was admitted to a normal ward. Both suffered from convulsions and other complications. Later a third a girl was placed in intensive care having suffered from convulsions.
According to Typically Spanish

The health monitoring system, El Sistema Español de Farmacovigilancia, registered as many as 45 cases of bad reactions to the cervical cancer vaccine, while sources at the Ministry for Health put the number at only five.

Today Typically Spanish reports that:

One of the two 14 year old girls from Valencia who was admitted hospital 19 days ago after a side effect reaction to the cervical cancer vaccine earlier this month has had to return to the UCI, Intensive Care Unit. She is said to be in a serious but stable condition, while the second girl remains on the general ward and is making good progress. The two girls received their jabs on the 4th and 6th of February in health centres in Burjassot and Valencia. The Gardasil vaccine, lot NH52670, resulted in them both suffering from convulsions and losing consciousness for a time. After withdrawing the lot concerned, the Valencia regional health authority has once again started the VPH vaccine campaign.

The Ministry for Health says that since Gardasil was approved in Europe in October 2006, more than 1.14 million doses have been distributed in Spain.

FF support crashes in Irish Times /TNS mrbi poll.

• Fianna Fail 27 (-15)
• Fine Gael 34 (+11)
• Labour 14 (-1)
• Sinn Fein 8 (+0)
• Greens 4 (-1)
• Independents 13 (+7)

"The level of dissatisfaction with the Government is now a massive 76 per cent, while 61 per cent of people are dissatisfied with the way Mr Cowen is doing his job.Satisfaction with the Government is now just 18 per cent, a drop of 28 points since the last Irish Times poll in June, while satisfaction with Taoiseach Brian Cowen has fallen to 26 per cent, a drop of 21 points." The poll puts Fine Gael ahead of Fianna Fáil for the first time ever in an Irish Times opinion survey.

Source: Irish Times

Whilst all polls are just a snapshot in time this particularly survey is sure to shock even the most ardent FF and Green Party supporters. Unpopular government decisions on the medical card for over 70s and severe education and agricultural cutbacks have sapped popular support for the government. Unemployment in Ireland has reached a 10 year high of 6.7 percent and has grown by 60 percent over the past year to more than 250,000. The decision to defer the cervical cancer vaccination programme for young girls has further angered voters.

With a deficit projected at 7% more unpopular cutbacks and rises in unemployment are in the offing. Can the government withstand the inevitable outcry, which will ensue? The next general election is not due until 2012. Ireland faces at least two very difficult years on the economic front. Next year it is anticipated that unemployment may reach 350,000. This will further strain government financial resources whilst efforts must continue to bring the deficit down below the 3% level required by the EU.

In any general election situation FF support would quickly rise to 40%. Much of the support lost to FG would probably return. FF supporters have an amazing capacity to rally behind their party.

FG has benefited strongly in this poll. However the party must learn to consolidate this rise in support. Richard Bruton -FG spokesman on finance- has starred in the economic debates and the party has benefited accordingly.

Labour Party support is also well up on its general election showing in 2007.

The poll is a warning to the Green Party that its support has begun to wane. Indeed the Greens may become the new PDs. The PDs acted as FFs mudguard and have now voted themselves out of existence. The Green Party is trapped. If it pulls down the Government the electorate will hammer it in any ensuing election. If it remains in government it must tolerate more unpalatable measures. FG and Labour can now mop up Green Party support.