Daniel Foggo and Philip Cardy
Download 'Too Hot', an exclusive Specials track from iTunes
A 12-year-old schoolgirl has been left paralysed from the waist down by a mystery illness that came on 30 minutes after she was given the new anticervical cancer jab.
Ashleigh Cave suffered dizziness and headaches soon after the vaccination at her school and then deteriorated rapidly, collapsing several times over the following days.
A week later she was admitted to hospital after losing all strength in her legs and, two months on, there has been no improvement.
Her mother Cheryl, 37, from Aintree, Merseyside, is blaming her daughter’s condition on the human papillomavirus (HPV) jab, which was introduced in Britain in September as part of a government-funded vaccination programme.
All girls aged 12 and 13 are being offered vaccinations with Cervarix, a drug that stimulates the body to defend itself against HPV, to protect against the later onset of cervical cancer which is linked to the virus.
In America, where an immunisation programme using a similar product, Gardasil, began more than a year earlier, there have been dozens of serious “adverse events” reported in which a link to the vaccinations is suspected.
They included 30 deaths in addition to cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome, an auto-immune disease that can cause paralysis. The American authorities have said, however, that there is no evidence the HPV jabs caused these reactions.
Ashleigh’s case has been logged with Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency as an instance of possible Guillain-Barré syndrome, although her doctors have now apparently ruled it out as the cause.
The agency has also indicated that the illness was probably not caused by the jab. Ashleigh’s doctor at Alder Hey children’s hospital, Liverpool, where she is undergoing tests, has said she did not have a “pathological reaction” to the vaccine.
Cheryl Cave said that she found the timing of her daughter’s symptoms impossible to ignore.
She said that within 30 minutes of Ashleigh having the jab at Maricourt Catholic high school on the morning of October 15, she was complaining of severe headaches and dizziness. Over the next 48 hours her condition worsened and she collapsed five times. Two days later they set off to visit friends in Hampshire but the schoolgirl collapsed again on the train.
She was admitted to Frimley Park hospital in Camberley, Surrey, where doctors gave the initial diagnosis of “vertigo and generalised myalgia, probably due to recent vaccinations”.
On October 22, a week after she was given the HPV jab, she was admitted to Alder Hey hospital, where she has remained ever since.
Her mother said: “At first they tried to tell us she was imagining it because she was being bullied . . . they will not mention her illness and the vaccine in the same sentence.”
A spokesman for the medicines agency said: “Guillain-Barré syndrome naturally occurs in the population. There is no good evidence to suggest that the Cervarix vaccine can cause [it].”
GlaxoSmithKline, which makes Cervarix, said that the agency had suggested the case “was not linked to the vaccine”.
Win a luxury weekend to Newcastle and its neighbour Gateshead, find out more here
Risk, resilience and embracing new technology
Industry sectors news at a glance. Interactive heatmap, video and podcast
Discover the power of collective thinking. Submit a solution and be in with a chance to win a Media Hub Home Entertainment System
The inside track on current trends in the charity, not for profit and social enterprise sectors
Everything the Business Traveller needs to know to make a better trip
Make the most of the summer and enter our fabulous photographic competition, you could win a £5000 holiday
Corsica is an island of beauty and contrast, an ideal holiday destination
Enjoy further reading from Travel to Fashion, Business to Sport, discover more




Shortcuts to help you find sections and articles
The clever way to lease a new car is with Car leasing made simple™
2009
per month on 36-month
Personal Contract Hire (PCH)
2008
42850
Car Insurance
£24,250 - £30,346
MI5
London
£60,000
The Environment Agency
Bristol
Up to £90K
Boots
Midlands
OTE £85k
Credit Protection Association
Nationwide Opportunities
Completely London
Luxury Condo's in Manhattan with NYC views
The best new homes in Wimbledon?
Nationwide
Fabulous Cruise And Cruise & Stay Offers Including Virgin Atlantic Flights Prices Start From Only £699pp!
Last Minute Cruise And Cruise & Stay Offers. Med From £499pp, Caribbean From £699pp!
5 star quality at a 3 star price.
8 fabulous Canadian cities ...you won’t find cheaper
Contact our advertising team for advertising and sponsorship in Times Online, The Times and The Sunday Times, or place your advertisement.
Times Online Services: Dating | Jobs | Property Search | Used Cars | Holidays | Births, Marriages, Deaths | Subscriptions | E-paper
News International associated websites: Globrix Property Search | Property Finder | Milkround
Copyright 2009 Times Newspapers Ltd.
This service is provided on Times Newspapers' standard Terms and Conditions. Please read our Privacy Policy.To inquire about a licence to reproduce material from Times Online, The Times or The Sunday Times, click here.This website is published by a member of the News International Group. News International Limited, 1 Virginia St, London E98 1XY, is the holding company for the News International group and is registered in England No 81701. VAT number GB 243 8054 69.
"It is 100's of times more potent than mercury which in itself is classed as the 2nd most poisonous substance on earth and untested!"
If mercury is untested, how could anyone know whether or not it is the second most poisonous substance on Earth?
Simon, London,
In 1977, ten babies died in a Toronto hospital when an antiseptic containing Thiomersal was dabbed on their umbilical cords. Incredibly, Thiomersal was added to increasing numbers of childhood vaccines, with the autism epidemic"(and resulting denials) the consequence.
Erwin Alber, Bangkok , Thailand
well another balls up by yet another pharmaceutical company GLAXO SMITH KLINE now ,oh and of course nothing to do with CERVARIX , just like MMR was nothing to do with AUTISM .WHY do they think USA stopped it because of side effects such as PARALYSIS and lots of other side effects. dont con us.
dave, wales, uk
Hi
It is unscientific to dismiss out of hand the vaccine as being a possible cause.
However we know what would happen to any doctors who step out of government/vaccine industry line as Dr Wakefield so unwittingly did.
http://www.theoneclickgroup.co.uk/
Sue, london,
The odds of getting cervical cancer are compounded exponentially with the number of sexual partners a female has.
This vaccine is a lame attempt for modern man to remove the consequence of sexual sin. Girls wait until you are married, you won't be able to give him just your whole heart, but kids 2
Joseph, St.Clair County, USA
What horrifies me is that any parent of a teenage girls thinks a vaccaination will protect their daughter more than explaining that sexual activity is for adults and all the attendant issues that go along with it.
Wake up people! Take some responsibility for parenting!!!!!!!
KvK, Vancouver, Canada
Gwen wrote: "Thimerosal is 100's of times more potent than mercury."
This makes no sense. Thimerosal is ethyl mercury, which is excreted faster than methyl mercury. And mercury is not the second most dangerous substance in the universe. That is another mindless talking point.
Ben, Bay View, US
I am disappointed with the misleading headline which has the effect of leading the reader to believe that there is a link between paralyses and this jab. At least 3 times it is stated that the jab is not the likely cause of this girls condition. Like the MMR, this is irresponsible scaremongering.
Amy, London, UK
vaccines do not cause autism, and the reason the doctors aren't mentioning the daughters condition and the vaccine in the same sentance is because they are UNRELATED. grow up people, vaccines dont use mercury anymore, and im very suspicious of barbaras comment about rat poison, remember the MMR hoax
richard, swansea,
Mercury is a poison to the human body, no matter how it is ingested.
There is concern that autism is the result of vaccines, which are mercury based and the numbers are increasing.
Rat poison is used to thin blood in heart patients. Rat poison is being injected into young girls this is bad! !
Barbara, Idaho, USA
Its probably not thimerosal that is to blame. For this vaccine, the preservative/anti fungal of choice is sodium borate. This substance is better known as Borax and is most commonly used as RAT POISON. Follow the link from here: http://www.naturalnews.com/024872.html to the Merck's own documents.
Steve Michael, Oxford, England
Kathleen; while we are very different in the insides, our cells are relatively the same (differing largely in nutrition, and very slightly in gene makeup)
While no amount of testing can make absolutely sure no body will react negatively, the pros vastly outweigh the cons.
Hah, fremont, US
Its not just the specific vaccines that are questionable, its the use of thimerosal - a mercury based chemical that is used as a preservative in many vaccines.
It is 100's of times more potent than mercury which in itself is classed as the 2nd most poisonous substance on earth and untested!
Gwen Harper, Coventry, England
Raw greed is disgusting, hurting children for profit should be rewarded appropriately. I believe there is justice in the afterlife but I would sure like to see some in this world for corporations so strong doctors are afraid of them.
Mike Scirocco, Santa Cruz, CA, US
We may all look similar, but inside our bodies we are not, and its time that drug companies realised this, and no ammount of testing can say that a drug is safe. I would not have allowed a Daughter of mine to be placed on a vaccine like this. We have more illnesses despite the many drugs now offered
Kathleen Ranger, Fleet,
How is it possible, or credible for Ashleigh Cave`s doctor to rule out Cervarix as being the cause of her condition, when he can`t even work out what is wrong with her in the first place?
Nick Wells , Reigate,
I'd be generally worried about the mercury carrier on an epidemiological basis in respect to a whole range of vaccines- the bioaccumulation in the brain phenomena especialy in relation to certain vulnerable people ; very old and very young. More research is required.
Malachy McAnespie, Belfast, Co Antrim