Co Kildare founder of national children's charity Jack & Jill is now seriously concerned for the health of his youngest teenage daughter following a HPV vaccine

A famous father based in Co Kildare is speaking out with deep concern about the HPV vaccine, with his 17-year-old daughter now 'bed-ridden' and unable to attend school.

Founder of Jack & Jill Foundation, Jonathan Irwin, and husband to Mary Ann, a well established politician and businesswoman, is now calling on Minister for Health Simon Harris to organise a review of the hundreds of girls, along with his daughter, suffering side effects, that he claims are following being given the Gardasil vaccine.

Their daughter, who represented Ireland, in horseriding, was given the vaccine at the age of 13.Within weeks, she began to suffer all the side-effects. Mr Irwin says that if his wife, Mary Anne, of Lily O'Briens Chocolates, had known that his daughter could be at risk of these side effects, she would not have given the go-ahead for the vaccine.

According to Mr Irwin, the side effects of the vaccine are not being revealed to parents.

He said:"I am not antivaccine, why don't we use smear tests for 17 year olds? It is a nightmare, she is our baby. She has not been able to get back on her horse, everyday she has a splitting headache, she has become so lethargic. She is sick the whole time, what she can eat now is so restricted."

His daughter, due to her illness, has been unable to attend school for over a year. She loved school, says her father, but does not have the energy anymore.

Blood tests reveal that Mr Irwin's daughter has aluminium in her system. It seems, worries Mr Irwin, that her immune system is now suppressed.

Mr Irwin, who has seen the death of three sons, has raised €35 million and supported more then 2,000 families through the Jack and Jill Foundation. The father of nine children is deeply concerned for his youngest.

He said: "We are not fruitcakes, we have a very sick child. Tell us why?."

According to the HSE, the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine protects girls from developing cervical cancer when they are adults.

The HSE has offered the HPV vaccine to all girls in first year in second level schools since 2010 to protect them from cervical cancer in adulthood. HPV vaccine is offered to this age group because the response to the vaccine is best at this age.

The vaccine is recommended by

the World Health Organization
the International Federation of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
the National Immunisation Advisory Committee says that HPV vaccines have been shown to be very safe. The HSE says that for more than 10 years the safety of the HPV vaccine has been strictly monitored and frequently reviewed by many international bodies including:

the European Medicines Agency (EMA);
the Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety of the World Health Organization; and
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US.

These international bodies have continually reported that the vaccine is safe with no known long-term side effects.

The vaccine can cause some short term side effects they say. These may include:

pain, redness or swelling in the arm where the vaccine was given;
headache;
dizziness;
nausea; and/or
a mild fever.

These can be treated with paracetamol or ibuprofen.

Occasionally girls faint after getting an injection. The girls will be advised to sit down for 15 minutes after the vaccination. This helps prevent fainting.

Rarer side effects include: