Monstrous Remedy

Horror films attract crowds of fans. Alas, life can surpass the horrors of movies. Take, for instance, the case of teratogenesis, human "monsters" created by drug-induced birth defects. One of these drugs, Thalidomide, was developed more than half century ago in Germany as a mild sleeping pill and anti-nausea remedy. However, this medication was withdrawn there due to its association with monstrous births. Although in the USA the drug was not approved for sale by the FDA, a group of doctors who received samples from a pharmaceutical company began to experiment on their patients. The tragic result was that a number of unsuspecting women gave birth to horribly deformed children, including babies born without limbs. Only the determined efforts of a woman scientist working at the FDA prevented the mass marketing of Thalidomide in America. However, to save their investment in research and marketing, Big Pharma found new applications for Thalidomide. They just changed its name. So, the drug is still used in the treatment of leprosy, as well as of certain cancers, such as myeloma.