{"package_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392","decision_granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392-0","petitioner_identifier":"LORI L. SWEENEY, Personal Representative of the Estate of LUELLA A. GARLANGER","is_minor":null,"age_at_vaccination":null,"age_unit_raw":"years (no age in source - verified)","vaccine_type":"influenza","vaccination_date":"2011-10-15","condition_raw":"Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and paraneoplastic syndrome","condition_category":"GBS","autism_spectrum_adjacent":0,"outcome":"denied","award_amount_usd":null,"decision_date":"2020-02-28","extraction_version":"gemini-v2","extracted_at":"2026-04-30T03:13:18.162180+00:00","number_of_concurrent_vaccines":1,"dose_number":null,"time_to_onset_days":16,"theory_of_causation":"Off-Table","is_death":1,"date_of_death":"2012-08-05","petition_filed_date":"2013-06-12","case_summary":"Lori L. Sweeney, as personal representative of the estate of Luella A. Garlanger, filed a petition alleging that the influenza vaccine Ms. Garlanger received on October 15, 2011, caused her to develop Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). Ms. Garlanger initially presented with back pain and tingling approximately two weeks after vaccination. Her condition progressed, and she was diagnosed with an acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, initially suspected to be vaccine-related GBS. However, as further medical evaluations were conducted, including the discovery of a lung nodule and positive anti-Hu antibodies, her treating physicians shifted the diagnosis towards a paraneoplastic syndrome secondary to small cell lung carcinoma. Petitioner's expert, Dr. Lawrence Steinman, argued for a vaccine-induced GBS, suggesting the vaccine acted as an aggravating factor to a dormant disease. Respondent's experts, Dr. Sara Vargas and Dr. Eric Lancaster, strongly contended that Ms. Garlanger's symptoms were overwhelmingly consistent with paraneoplastic sensory neuropathy due to lung cancer, not GBS. They highlighted the presence of anti-Hu antibodies, the specific pattern of neurological deficits, and the lack of recovery as indicative of paraneoplastic syndrome. The court found that Petitioner failed to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that Ms. Garlanger suffered from GBS caused by the flu vaccine. The evidence indicated that her neurological condition was more likely caused by a paraneoplastic syndrome associated with her lung cancer. Ms. Garlanger passed away on August 5, 2012, with her death certificate listing acute pneumonia and neuroendocrine lung cancer as direct causes, and paraneoplastic syndrome with GBS as contributing factors. The petition was denied.","is_minor_inferred":0,"is_pediatric_broad":0,"special_master":"Herbrina Sanders Young","petitioner_identifier_original":null,"caption_petitioner_name":null,"petitioner_attorney_name":"Theodore J. Hong","petitioner_attorney_firm":"Maglio, Christopher & Toale","petitioner_attorney_location":"Seattle, WA","adjudicator_name":null,"caption_people_backfilled_at":null,"attorney_canonical_keys":"|theodore-hong|","firm_canonical_key":"maglio-christopher-and-toale","package_title":"SWEENEY et al v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","canonical_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392","plain_text_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392.txt","json_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392.json","source_documents":[{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392-0","title":"SWEENEY et al v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","docket_text":"PUBLIC DECISION (Originally filed: 2/28/2020) regarding 92 DECISION of Special Master. Signed by Special Master Herbrina Sanders. (rs) Service on parties made.","date_issued":"2020-04-10","pdf_url":"https://api.govinfo.gov/packages/USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392/granules/USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392-0/pdf","pdf_bytes":507137,"triage_decision":"keep","triage_reason":"docketText matches keep keyword 'decision of special master'","download_status":"ok","registry_pdf_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/pdf/USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392/USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392-0"},{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_13-vv-00392-1","title":"SWEENEY et al v. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES","docket_text":"PUBLIC DECISION (Originally filed: 12/16/2020) regarding 100 DECISION of Special Master - Fees Signed by Special Master Herbrina Sanders. (Peralta, Kisairys) Service on parties made.","date_issued":"2021-02-11","pdf_url":null,"pdf_bytes":null,"triage_decision":"skip","triage_reason":"fees-only decision (attorney compensation)","download_status":"skipped"}]}