Latest news with #HormonePregnancyTests
Daily Record
16-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
Primodos campaigners have said the government is failing women five years on from a review into the scandal
Five years after an independent review found regulators failed and were responsible for 'avoidable harm' campaigners say they are still waiting for justice. Campaigners who blame hormone pregnancy test for harming their unborn babies have said the government is failing women five years on from a review into the scandal. Primodos was taken off the market in 1978 – after 1.5million women had taken it. A 2020 independent review, First Do No Harm, found regulators failed and were responsible for 'avoidable harm'. How the NHS responded to fears over Primodos as well as pelvic mesh – linked to chronic pain – and anti-epilepsy drug sodium valproate were also reviewed. Five years on, campaigners are still waiting for justice. Wilma Ord, 77, of Livingston, took Primodos in 1970. Her daughter Kirsteen, 54, is deaf, severely asthmatic and has cerebral palsy. She said: 'Families can't wait any longer for justice, help or support.' Marie Lyon, of the Association for Children Damaged by Hormone Pregnancy Tests, added: 'The IMMDS review concluded Primodos should have been removed in 1967. It was removed in 1978, due to failures of the UK regulator to acknowledge hundreds of warnings they had received since 1958 of concerns about severe adverse effects on unborn babies. 'Since the report, 61 of our members have died without receiving justice. How can government bodies be so inhuman as to delay justice in the knowledge many of our families are elderly.' Campaigner group Sling the Mesh accused governments of 'dragging their feet'. It said there had been no audit to gauge the harm caused by mesh or compensation and few recommendations had been implemented. The group's Kath Sansom said: 'The institutional inertia amplifies the suffering – especially the lack of compensation for harm caused to thousands of women who innocently trusted their doctor they were receiving a safe treatment.' Sharon Hodgson, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on First Do No Harm – Mesh, Primodos, Valproate said: 'This little progress is hugely disappointing.' In 2023, Primodos campaigners lost a High Court battle for compensation – leaving the claimants potentially liable for costs. Manufacturer Schering, now part of Bayer, has denied a link. Expressing sympathy with those who believe they suffered following the use of hormone pregnancy tests and pelvic mesh, the Department of Health and Social Care said: 'The government is considering the Patient Safety Commissioner's recommendations in full.' Bayer said: 'Bayer maintains that no significant new scientific knowledge has been produced that would call into question the validity of the previous assessment of there being no link between the use of Primodos and the occurrence of such congenital anomalies.'
Edinburgh Live
22-05-2025
- Health
- Edinburgh Live
West Lothian mum calls for justice on pregnancy drug after its 'impact on daughter'
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info A West Lothian campaigner is calling for justice over a controversial pregnancy test drug after children have been impacted. Many women given Primodos blame it and similar drugs for causing abnormalities in babies. They have accused Labour of ignoring families, reports The Daily Record. In 2023, campaigners lost a High Court battle for compensation – leaving the claimants potentially liable for costs. Wilma Ord, 77, from Livingston, took the drug in 1970. Her daughter Kirsteen, 54, is deaf, severely asthmatic and has cerebral palsy. She said: 'My last MP was SNP Hannah Bardell who went out of her way to listen, to do everything she could but it feels like everything she did has been undone. 'The Labour Government has done nothing for us. They won't look at new evidence, they just won't listen to us.' Marie Lyon, of the Association for Children Damaged by Hormone Pregnancy Tests, took Primodos in the early stages of her pregnancy with daughter Sarah and has been fighting for justice ever since. She said: 'I share Wilma's frustration at the apparent lack of support from the Labour Government.' Labour MP for Livingston, Gregor Poynton, has met Wilma and has joined the campaign's All-Party Parliamentary Group of MPs. Primodos was taken off the market in 1978, but 1.5million women had taken it by that point. Manufacturer Schering, now part of Bayer, has denied a link. Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sentstraight to your messages. A 2020 independent review found health regulators failed patients and Primodos was responsible for 'avoidable harm'. Bayer said: 'Bayer maintains that no significant new scientific knowledge has been produced that would call into question the validity of the previous assessment of there being no link between the use of Primodos and the occurrence of such congenital anomalies.' The Department of Health said: 'The Commission on Human Medicines last year concluded that there was no new evidence to support the claims that the use of hormone tests had adverse outcomes.'
