The wonder drug was finally here! To cure the nations morning
sickness, but the ‘wonder drug’ would do more than just cure morning sickness.
It would change lives beyond belief.
Thalidomide, known as Distaval in the UK, was a German manufactured
drug and was introduced to Europe in the late 1950’s early 60’s. It was
originally developed as a sleeping pill, but also helped with morning sickness.
Before the drug was released to be sold over the counter it was tested. It was
discovered by scientists that “it was practically impossible to achieve a
deadly overdoes of the drug.”[1]
Showing that Thalidomide was a ‘harmless’ drug and would improve the lives of
people taking it, the effects of taking Thalidomide during pregnancy was never
studied. It became extremely popular with pregnant women because it had shown
that this drug reduced morning sickness. But had morning sickness really been
‘cured’?!
Was this new drug
Thalidomide too good to be true? Unfortunately, yes. The effects that
Thalidomide had during pregnancies were to change the lives of hundreds of
unborn babies. June Hornsby took Thalidomide in the 60’s and suffered the
consequences, “I took Thalidomide regularly during the pregnancy. Towards the
end of my pregnancy the GP told me to stop taking the drug as there might be
problems with it. But we didn’t know what.”[2] At
the start of the 1960s, Europe and the rest of the World kept reporting many
cases of birth defects and nobody could understand why this was happening.
Surly it could not have been a coincidence. Surly it could not have been Thalidomide?
It was found that, all the reported incidents had similar symptoms. The
symptoms included, limb defects, organ failure and internal defects. These
symptoms presented themselves at birth or soon after birth occurred.
Paediatrician Lenz “suggested that these deformities resulted from the mothers
having taken thalidomide. By a remarkable coincidence, the same suggestion was
made at much the same time by McBride in Australia.”[3] It
was concluded that Thalidomide was the main cause of birth defects, which would
cause one of the biggest investigations that took place into the pharmaceutical
industries. 
The headlines
exploded over the effects of Thalidomide and outed the pharmaceutical companies
as ‘Scandalous’. People wanted answers and an explanation for how this could
happen. The pharmaceutical companies offered shameful compensation to those
effected. Further outrage was caused
when no one would take responsibility for the heart-breaking effects caused by
Thalidomide. “Though there had been a terrible tragedy, governments declared
that since the testing and marketing of the drug had met all the legal
requirements of the time, what happened next was no the companies’
responsibility.” [4]
Thalidomide shocked the world in a horrific way, it was far cry from
the ‘wonder drug.’ Nobody could ever envisage that Thalidomide would affect the
lives of some many people in such a heart- breaking way from simply helping
morning sickness.
By Molly Hamilton.
By Molly Hamilton.
[1] Science Museum, ‘Exploring the
History of Medicine, Thalidomide’ http://broughttolife.sciencemuseum.org.uk/broughttolife/themes/controversies/thalidomide
[2] Daily Mail Online, ‘Thalidomide? What’s all the fuss? (2008) http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1033081/Thalidomide-Whats-fuss.html
[3] Thalidomide Victims Association of Canada, ‘Recognition of Thalidomide Defects’ http://www.thalidomide.ca/recognition-of-thalidomide-defects/
[4] Independent, ‘A Battle won
late’ (1997) http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/a-battle-won-late-1247236.html
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