Re: the letter on Sunday about proper testing of the Swine Flu drug:
No matter how much testing is done on drugs these days, there is always a risk and it is up to the medical staff to weigh that risk against the benefit of giving the drug.
With regards to Thalidomide, this drug was not developed to combat “morning sickness”, however due to its anti-emetic properties it was prescribed to combat this syndrome in pregnant women in the late 50s early 60s. Thalidomide, apparently, was developed as an antidote to Sarin nerve gas.
The amount of testing that new drugs undergo these days is far more advanced than what was done 50 years ago, and the regulatory bodies within the pharmaceutical industry also weigh up the risks of being sued before new drugs eventually reach the market.
These tests do involve laboratory animals and before any tree huggers and animal activists start complaining, why do they not volunteer to take the untested drugs themselves?
SearcaighDubai