Episode 59 Thalidomide: Justice Delayed, Justice Denied

The story of thalidomide is often employed as a cautionary tale – why testing a drug’s safety during pregnancy is crucial or why it’s important to choose the right animal models. Or it’s framed as a success story for drug repurposing or regulation. But those tellings often gloss over the darker lesson of thalidomide: that for some companies, the bottom line is more important than human life. This week, we explore all elements of this infamous drug. We start by examining what we know about how thalidomide causes the severe congenital malformations it’s associated with, and then we dive into the deep, dark history of the drug, complete with a full cast of villains and heroes. Finally, we discuss thalidomide’s controversial comeback as a treatment for myeloma and complications of leprosy. Get out your angry hats for this one, people, because you’ll find yourself asking along with us, “why are humans the way we are?”

Our firsthand account, along with other stories from those affected by thalidomide, can be found on the website for Thalidomide Group Australia. And to learn more about the Wellcome Library’s thalidomide oral history project, check out this blog post or listen to interview excerpts on their Soundcloud page.

HistoryBiology
Magazanik, Michael. Silent Shock: The Men Behind the Thalidomide Scandal and an Australian Family’s Long Road to Justice. Text Publishing, 2015.Vargesson, Neil. “Thalidomide‐induced teratogenesis: History and mechanisms.” Birth Defects Research Part C: Embryo Today: Reviews 105.2 (2015): 140-156.
Knightley, Phillip. Suffer the children: The story of thalidomide. Viking Adult, 1979. Sunday Times Insight TeamSmithells, R. W., and C. G. Newman. “Recognition of thalidomide defects.” Journal of medical genetics 29.10 (1992): 716.
Stephens, Trent, and Rock Brynner. Dark remedy: the impact of thalidomide and its revival as a vital medicine. Basic Books, 2009.Mansour, Sahar, Emma Baple, and Christine M. Hall. “A clinical review and introduction of the diagnostic algorithm for thalidomide embryopathy (DATE).” Journal of Hand Surgery (European Volume) 44.1 (2019): 96-108.
Attacking the Devil: Harold Evans and the Last Nazi War Crime. 2006.Vargesson, Neil. “The teratogenic effects of thalidomide on limbs.” Journal of Hand Surgery (European Volume) 44.1 (2019): 88-95.
Wang, Lin, et al. “Efficacy of thalidomide therapy in pediatric Crohn’s disease with evidence of tuberculosis.” World Journal of Gastroenterology 23.43 (2017): 7727.
Simon, Marion, et al. “Long-term outcomes of thalidomide therapy for adults with refractory Crohn’s disease.” Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology 14.7 (2016): 966-972.
Singhal, S., and J. Mehta. “Thalidomide in cancer.” Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy 56.1 (2002): 4-12.
Newbronner, Elizabeth, et al. “The health and quality of life of Thalidomide survivors as they age–Evidence from a UK survey.” Plos one 14.1 (2019): e0210222.
Vianna, Fernanda Sales Luiz, et al. “Epidemiological surveillance of birth defects compatible with thalidomide embryopathy in Brazil.” PLoS One 6.7 (2011): e21735.
For details on the timeline of human embryological development: https://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php/Main_Page

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