Thalidomide Still Use Today !

[mikey4444]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-23425448

Anyone else surprised that Thalidomide is still being dispensed ?
It appears to be used in Brazil to combat Leprosy.

[woofgang]

no not at all. It used to be used to combat nausea in cancer sufferers. Its still a useful drug provided there is no possibility of the user conceiving...not sure if male users have to avoid making babies as well.

[Mosaic]

No, this has been done for years.

I don't think the drug itself is 'evil' - simply the terrible side effects it has if taken during pregnancy and the moral bankruptcy of Distillers in blocking compensation claims.

[mikey4444]

Is sqad awake yet ? ...his input here would be appreciated.

Just found this on the BBC :::http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-23418102

[Octavius]

The FDA approved its use in 1998 for the treatment of leprosy under regulated conditions, so not really surprising.

[EDDIE51]

It is still a very useful drug as long as it is certain that users are not pregnant or get pregnant while taking it. Leprosy and cancer are the 2 main diseases where it is used.

[Sqad]

I agree with all the above contributors and some 40 years ago was used by some doctors for rheumatoid arthritis.

[sunny-dave]

It is a very useful drug - and is used in the UK under very carefully restricted licences - I have been part of panels which permitted its use in my City for specific conditions on individual patients.

It is held/dispensed under very high security protocols. There is (obviously) extreme reluctance to use the drug on a woman of child bearing age even if she is verifiably not pregnant and is using efficient contraception. It would have to be a 'drug of last resort' under life threatening circumstances.

For men (and women well beyond the menopause) the barriers to use are lower, but an individual request has to be made in each case.

[mikey4444]

Leprosy is a serious disease of poverty. According to the BBC report, millions of doses of Thalidomide are being dispenses in Brazil each year. almost all of them in slums. How on earth can the Brazilian authorities be sure that nobody who is taking this drug is pregnant ? Even if it was dispensed only to men, others would take the drug from the men and self-dose.

Seems that this is an accident waiting to happen.

[jim360]

I suppose it is an accident waiting to happen, to some extent. The WHO does not recommend that the drug be used because of this. But there are nevertheless apparent medical benefits of the drug, and evidently some people are willing to take that risk (or not aware of it -- and even then might still be willing).

In the case of leprosy, alternative treatments are available, and perhaps we should be pushing these instead.

[sunny-dave]

I'm surprised by the "Millions of Thalidomide Pills" line, which isn't actually referred to in the report.

Certainly here in the UK it's bl**dy expensive and would not be handed out as a first line treatment even if it was entirely safe.

[Octavius]

mikey, although 9 years old, this makes interesting reading.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2004/mar/30/lifeandhealth.brazil

[mikey4444]

SunnyDave...why are you surprised ? ...read the link !

"Millions of Thalidomide pills are dispensed in Brazil, mostly to treat leprosy's painful complications"

[Svejk]

Surely using that criteria, ie the wrong people taking it, all drugs are dangerous.

[mikey4444]

Thanks Octavius. I remember this article from the Guardian. There was also a program about it on the BBC, at about the same time.

[sunny-dave]

I obviously did read the strapline in the link but I expected the video to expand/explain/confirm this - it doesn't.

[Sqad]

mikey

\\\\Seems that this is an accident waiting to happen.\\\

I must say that i agree........but with thalidomide treatment of leprosy cheap and leprosy a disease of the poor and in underdeveloped countries....nothing is likely to change.

[mikey4444]

Svejk...not sure how your contribution adds to this discussion about Thalidomide ? Are you suggesting that because some drugs and medicines may be misused, that we should stop all drug dispensing ?

As far as I am aware Thalidomide isn't used anywhere other than Brazil as a treatment for Leprosy ( but I am happy to be corrected on this point)

Leprosy occurs all over the world, so how is it being treated elsewhere, without using Thalidomide ?

Birth defects are occurring because of its use...simple as that.

[jake-the-peg]

Do you seriously want to say to a Brazillian man - we can't treat you're leprosy because it causes birth defects in Children?

There are many very very serious drugs that can cause birth defects

http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Birth_defects_and_drugs

The problem is not the drug it's the controls around it's use.


Thalidamide was a scandal because it was expressly prescribed for pregnant women for morning sickness

[Sqad]

Jake

\\\Do you seriously want to say to a Brazillian man - we can't treat you're leprosy because it causes birth defects in Children? \\\

That is fair comment for males, but doesn't wash for females, particularly as the alternatives are not teratogenic.

[mikey4444]

Sqad. Can you enlighten us about Leprosy and the use of Thalidomide a little more, given your esteemed medical background ? What other treatments are available to Leprosy sufferers other than Thalidomide ? Are they as good as Thalidomide ? In your opinion, does the benefits of using Thalidomide outweigh its serious dangers ?

Sorry...lots of questions !