Sex: F
Vaccine: HPV4
Symptoms: Laceration, Lymphadenopathy, Malabsorption, Malnutrition, Mass
Clinical narrative: This spontaneous social media report has been received from an unknown reporter. The reporter cited an online article, written by a consumer, who was the patient's parent, concerning a female patient of unknown age (reported as "young lady"). No information regarding the patient's medical history or concurrent conditions was provided. In January 2010, the patient was vaccinated with the first dose of GARDASIL injection (dose, route of administration, lot# and expiry date were not reported). She received her second dose on an unknown date, reported as on 3/31, and her third dose on an unknown date. There were no concomitant therapies reported. On an unknown date, reported as by 5/10, the patient experienced shortness of breath, along with horrible rib and back pain. She was unable to stand up straight or breathe deeply. It was reported that the pain episodes lasted as long as 4 weeks and required many emergency room (ER) visits. On an unknown date, reported as during one of those visits, a mass measuring 6x12x9 (units not provided) was found in the patient's abdominal muscle under her rib. The patient's doctors thought it was possibly bone cancer and kept her overnight to do a bone biopsy, but by morning (date unspecified), the mass was gone. The consumer reported that the physicians could give no explanation and conducted no further studies. The outcome of the event of mass measuring 6x12x9 (units not provided) found in the patient's abdominal muscle under her rib (possibly bone cancer) was reported as recovered/resolved on an unknown date. On unknown dates, the patient experienced constant leg and knee pain, intense muscle contractions, painful joints, chronic congestion, sore throats, ear pain, reoccurring hearing loss, bladder infections, heat sensitivity, feeling faint in showers or baths, shortness of breath when walking one flight of steps or talking too long, "unbearable" migraines "leaving her screaming in pain", light and sound sensitivity, chest pains, racing heart, lymphadenopathy, tiny cuts bleeding over 20 minutes, bruising, petechial rashes, cold purple feet, heavy menstrual cycles, "paralyzing" pelvic pain with lumps that "came and went", cycles lasting 3 weeks or longer, chronic fatigue, sleeping sometimes 20 hours a day, night sweats, strange skin sensations, lips going numb, reoccurring rashes covering her body, including the mucosa of her mouth or nose, which made her breathing difficult and therefore required ER visits. Moreover, on unknown dates, the patient experienced gastroparesis (also reported as "stomach paralysis"), which caused severe bloating, "appearing as if she was 6 months pregnant", "debilitating" pain, no appetite, severe weight loss, weight gain from "body going into starvation mode", constant nausea, vomiting blood and/or bile, which left the patient "begging for mercy and pleading for death". The patient was unable to absorb nutrition and suffered from malnourishment as a result. On an unknown date, the patient was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. She suffered from extreme memory loss, anger, insomnia, and severely diminished cognitive processes. On an unknown date, the patient inflicted self-harm by cutting and branding her wrists and hips, to cope with the suffering she endured daily. The outcome of the event of gastroparesis was reported as not recovered/not resolved (it was reported that the patient was going to "live with stomach paralysis for the rest of her life"). The outcome of the other events was not reported. The relatedness between GARDASIL and the events was not reported. However, the consumer reported that no recognition was ever given to the possibility that the GARDASIL might be the cause of the patient's side effects. Upon internal review, the events of reoccurring hearing loss and mass measuring 6x12x9 (units not provided) found in the patient's abdominal muscle under her rib (possibly bone cancer) were considered medically significant. This is one of several reports received from the same reporter. Additional information is not expected as no contact details were provided.