THE UNPREDICTABLE HISTORY OF THALIDOMIDE

Abstract

The article reflects the history of thalidomide, synthesized by the West German pharmaceutical company Chemie Gr?nenthal in 1954. Initially the drug was promoted as an effective hypnotic, devoid of the adverse effects of barbiturates. The drug became very popular in Germany and beyond its borders, and had been used in more than 40 countries. At some point thalidomide began to be offered for the treatment of nausea in pregnancy. However with time a gradual increase in the incidence of congenital malformations in children whose mothers took thalidomide during pregnancy was noted. Two doctors – Widukind Lenz and William McBride – are known for drawing public attention to the dangerous consequences of the drug usage in pregnancy. Initially, thalidomide manufacturers denied their guilt, however a numerous number lawsuits obliged pharmaceutical companies to pay huge financial compensations to the victims of thalidomide. In the United States, FDA employee Francis Kelsey became famous for not giving permission for thalidomide for the US pharmaceutical market despite its unrestricted usage in European countries. The article provides information about some thalidomide victims who were able to live an active life and become famous. After the recognition of the thalidomide tragedy the therapeutic usage of the drug seemed to be irrevocably terminated. However, in 1964 the Israeli doctor Yakov Sheskin almost by occasion discovered the therapeutic effect of thalidomide on some types of leprosy. In subsequent years the effectiveness of the drug was reported in a number of other diseases. However, the “thalidomide tragedy” with its teratogenicity is still holding back the widespread use of the drug. The bad experience of thalidomide should be a painful lesson for the pharmaceutical industry, but unfortunately, the story can be repeated, that is exemplified by the obesity drug scandal this year.