Statement of Protest against Resumption of Active Recommendation for HPV Vaccines (Cervical Cancer Vaccines)

November 12, 2021
HPV Vaccine Drug Injury Lawsuit National Plaintiffs Group
Representative: Nanami Sakai
National Legal Defense Team for HPV Vaccine Drug Injury Lawsuits
Co-representative: Masumi Mizuguchi
Co-representative: Miaki Yamanishi
https://www.hpv-yakugai.net/

Today, the Advisory Council of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) decided that it is appropriate to end the status of withholding active recommendation of the HPV vaccines, which has been continued since June 2013.

This must be an extremely unjustified conclusion that ignores the seriousness of the damage of victims and many scientific findings.

The adverse reactions of the HPV vaccines that have led to the suspension of the active recommendation include headache, generalized pain, hypersensitivity, weakness, involuntary movements, gait disturbance, severe fatigue, sleep disturbance, severe menstrual disturbance, memory disturbance and learning disabilities. The severity of the adverse reactions is characterized by the multilayered manifestation of symptoms in a single patient. The seriousness of adverse reactions to the HPV vaccines is shown by the fact that a rate approved as serious conditions in the relief system is 20 times higher than those who had quadruple combination, measels and rubella vaccinations.

On the other hand, since the government has not conducted follow-up surveys of vaccinated persons that the victims have ever been calling for, the exact frequency of occurrence of these adverse reactions and type of person vulnerable to the vaccines have not been clarified, and the government has yet to provide public with sufficient information.

Treatment methods for the adverse reactions have not been established, and cooperating medical institutions are not fully functioning. Some doctors do not even admit the victims are really suffering and argue that the victims have engaged in malingering. Even in the application of the relief system, many of the victims are decided by the authority that they are ineligible to receive compensation and the relief system is extremely inadequate.

Many of the victims who have followed the government’s  recommendation policy and received the vaccination have grown into adults, but they are still suffering from serious adverse reaction symptoms. They are facing indescribable anguishes including being forced to give up their higher education and future goals, facing difficulties in finding employment, and they are even criticized as if they have a harmful influence on society by increasing the number of cervical cancers.

Damages of these victims by the adverse reactions have not changed since 2013. The MHLW's explanation that it is providing " close supports" for victims is just a figment.

If the MHLW resumes the active recommendation, it is clear that there will be more victims who will experience the same suffering.

Research results from Japan and abroad have shown that adverse reactions the victims have been suffering are an immune-mediated neurological disorders caused by the HPV vaccines. On the other hand, the effectiveness of the HPV vaccines in reducing the lifetime incidence rate of cervical cancers has not ever been demonstrated.

Even with the HPV vaccines cervical cancer screening is necessary to prevent cervical cancers. For the prevention of cervical cancers, we should focus on screening with no adverse reactions and of which preventive effect has been scientifically proved.

We strongly protest against the resumption of the proactive recommendation of the HPV vaccines, which ignores scientific findings as mentioned above and would produce new victims.

If the government is going to force through the resumption of the active recommendation, it is essential to develop a relief system for victims and provide accurate information to those who wish to receive the vaccination. Therefore we demand that the government conduct research on treatment, develop a true medical care system, and conduct follow-up surveys on vaccinated persons to have a better understanding of status of adverse reactions.

PDF Download

return to English homepage

statement

June 14, 2018

National Plaintiffs Association for the HPV Vaccines Lawsuits in Japan

Representative   Nanami Sakai

National Attorneys Association for the HPV Vaccines Lawsuits in Japan

Joint Representative   Masumi Minaguchi

Joint Representative   Yoshiaki Yamanishi

It has been five years since the Japanese Government halted proactive recommendation of the HPV vaccine on June 14, 2013, claiming that it could not provide the public with enough information. Compared to other routine vaccinations, an average of over seven times the number of serious adverse effects per one million HPV vaccinations have been reported, and the number of disability certifications by the Adverse Drug Reaction Relief System is almost ten times higher. The government has put in place research groups and selected cooperating medical institutions for the HPV vaccine, but measures to prevent adverse effects and to provide treatment have yet to be established. The public cannot use the HPV vaccine with peace of mind.

The government officially endorsed the HPV vaccine nine years ago, and many of the victims who were junior or high school students at the time of their HPV vaccination have now grown into adults. However, they have received no effective medical treatment until now and suffer from serious adverse effects, not only pain spreading all over their bodies and involuntary movements, but perceptual disorders, impaired mobility, sleep disruption, impaired memory, and learning disabilities. While their classmates became working adults, they have been incapable of fully attending classes and have abandoned their plans for higher education or getting a job. With no medical institutions able to give them sufficient treatment, they see no bright future and live under a shadow of uncertainty as they struggle to cope with agonizing symptoms every day.

Similar cases have been also reported overseas. Groups of victims from five countries, UK, Spain, Ireland, Colombia and Japan, participated in an international symposium held in Tokyo in March this year, and published a Joint Statement in April, calling for the necessity of a fact-finding investigation, development of treatment methods, and support for daily life, education and employment.

In the meantime, studies on the adverse effects of the HPV vaccine have made solid progress and a number of results have been reported. Based on analysis of multiple cases, one study clarified that the adverse effects of a range of symptoms develop in a multi-layered manner over time. Another study reported changes in cerebrospinal fluid, cerebral blood flow, and peripheral nerves, etc. A third study reported that the HPV vaccine causes impaired mobility among other effects in vaccinated mice due to neurological damage. Finally, a fourth study indicated that individuals develop chronic ailments soon after receiving the HPV vaccine. A paper written by researchers from the WHO Collaborating Centre for International Drug Monitoring argues that previous signal evaluations and epidemiological studies have relied primarily on reporting of a specific diagnosis or single-symptom concept, and thus a focus on symptomatology and seriousness in combination with an investigation of the underlying pathology may be required to fully elucidate the safety signals.

The drugmakers GlaxoSmithKline PLC and Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. have long ignored this progress and insist on resuming proactive recommendation of the HPV vaccine, adding that the Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety (GACVS) in WHO and other overseas authorities have already approved the safety of the HPV vaccine. However, the epidemiological studies they rely on were not conducted with proper understanding of the adverse effects of the HPV vaccine and thus cannot be a basis for confirming safety. It has also become clear that there are conflicts of interests and a lack of neutrality in WHO.

At the current time, the overall Japanese HPV vaccination rate has dropped to less than 1 percent, and few new cases have been reported from clinical practices, but new victims will obviously emerge if the government were to resume proactive recommendation of the HPV vaccine. In January this year, although the government updated their HPV vaccine leaflets, those for girls to be vaccinated and their parents intentionally omit the risk of impaired memory and learning disabilities, delivering misleading information to the public. Far from resuming proactive recommendation of the HPV vaccine, what the government must do now is to remove the HPV vaccine from its routine vaccination list.

We call again for the government and drugmakers not to spread harm any further, and demand that they compensate for all the harm caused based on their legal liabilities, and take the necessary measures to develop treatment methods and establish a medical treatment structure to prevent more suffering, so that victims can live in peace in the future.