Thalidomide Makers Refuse To Accept Responsibility

Marketed at the end of the 1950s as a ‘wonder drug’ for pregnant women suffering from morning sickness, Thalidomide was withdrawn from the shelves of British chemists in 1961 after it was found to cause debilitating birth defects.
The UK government only apologised for its part in the scandal last year when it finally set aside compensation money for the victims.
Of the approximately 2,000 babies born with Thalidomide–related deformities in the UK between 1958 and 1961, fewer than 500 are alive today.
Although they were not expected to live beyond the age of 25, they are now middle-aged and still battling the disabilities caused by the drug.
As well as living with shortened limbs, some have also endured malformations of the eyes and ears, heart, genitals, kidneys and the digestive tract.

The drug was developed by German pharmaceutical giant Grunenthal in 1953 and brought on to the German market in 1957, then internationally the following year.
By the end of 1959, the first clear reports of nerve damage in Thalidomide-users reached the company.
Although Grunenthal was pressured to establish a trust fund for German victims in 1970, the company has never acknowledged any error, or established any compensation for those affected in 46 other countries.

Distillers, the British distributor of the drug, did set up a compensation fund back in 1968.
The company, now part of Diageo, paid £2.8 million a year to the Thalidomide Trust and back in 2005 earmarked an extra £150 million to be given to survivors.
Campaigners also received a boost in January 2010 when the UK Government expressed its “Sincere regret” for failing to protect consumers and set up a health fund so survivors could adapt their homes.

The drug continues to be manufactured as Thalomid by the US corporation Celgene.
It has been shown to be effective in the treatment of leprosy, but the fact that the drug continues to cause birth defects means that its use remains risky and controversial.