Families who claim that their children were harmed by the use of Primodos, a hormonal pregnancy test, are expressing frustration at being overlooked in a proposed financial compensation plan. Over a million women in the UK in the 1960s and 70s were given Primodos, leading to its withdrawal from the market in 1978. Families have long believed that the drug caused birth defects, stillbirths, and miscarriages, though manufacturer Schering, now owned by Bayer, denies this. A court judge recently ruled that no new evidence has emerged linking the drug to foetal harm.
Whilst a new scheme proposed by the Patient Safety Commissioner on financial support for epilepsy drugs and pelvic mesh implants continues, ignored are those families that have been pressing the Government to acknowledge the harm done by Primodos. Affected women were given two pills to assess if they were pregnant, with a period triggered if no pregnancy was detected. Dr Henrietta Hughes has urged ministers to back the redress for Primodos families, but her recommendations only focus on affected patients of epilepsy drugs and pelvic mesh implants.
50-year campaigner Marie Lyon, whose daughter was born with under-formed limbs after she was prescribed Primodos, feels “devastated” that the first major report by the Commissioner overlooks the drug. “Mums like me all feel guilty,” she says, relating to those who took the tablets and had children who were damaged or died. No state or other help is forthcoming, with affected families left alone to manage physical and mental needs. Dr Hughes, however, views her recommendations as a blueprint for patient redress, and Primodos families may well be included
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