Latest news with #Stilbestrol
ITV News
7 hours ago
- Politics
- ITV News
'We are still suffering': People affected by forced adoption demand government apology
Women affected by the forced adoption scandal have staged a protest at Westminster, demanding a formal government apology. In the decades after World War II, an estimated 250,000 women had their children taken and adopted because they were unmarried. Women claim their suffering, shame and trauma have been ignored by successive governments. A human rights joint committee recommended a formal apology in July 2022, prompting the Welsh and Scottish governments to apologise to people affected by forced adoptions. But the UK government has not. Three years later, dozens of people travelled to Westminister to make their voices heard. Zara Phillips - who was adopted as a baby - organised the protest. "It would mean an acknowledgement of what we went through as adoptees and for our mothers who were really just teenagers and had committed no crime," Zara said. ITV News understands that the Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has written to the Movement for an Adoption Apology (MAA) to organise a meeting, which campaigners have been requesting for more than a year. Ann Andic was pregnant and unmarried when she was sent to a mother and baby home in North London in 1969, at the age of 19. Her child was placed in foster care at six weeks old. Ann worked two jobs to save up enough money to find them a home. But against her wishes, she said the baby was placed for adoption and social workers pressured her to sign the legal papers. After decades of silence and shame, Ann contacted ITV News after seeing our ongoing investigation and met other survivors for the first time. Aged 76, she protested for the first time on Tuesday. "It was a relief, gave me a voice having remained silent for so long and feeling like I was an inferior person," she said. "I feel like I'm part of a community now, a sisterhood. It's a double-edged sword. I'm sad there are so many of us, but it's a relief to know that I'm not the only one. "I hope the government will listen and see we are still suffering; they have to acknowledge the part that they played." For Ann, there has been a double tragedy. She believes, like other women in mother and baby homes across Britain, she may have been given the controversial drug Stilbestrol to dry up her breast milk shortly after giving birth. The drug - a synthetic hormone - was linked to cancer and the risk of blood clots and later withdrawn internationally. Ann wants to know if the drug is to blame for her health problems. In her late 20s, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer, which left her unable to have any more children. In a statement, the Department for Education said it took the issue 'extremely seriously' and would continue to engage with and provide support for people affected. 'This abhorrent practice should never have taken place, and our deepest sympathies are with all those affected." The Department of Health and Social Care said its sympathies were with anyone harmed by the historic use of the drug. 'The Secretary of State has been clear he will look seriously at these allegations, and the government will continue to consider enhanced screening for those impacted by the use of this drug,' a spokesperson said.
STV News
2 days ago
- Health
- STV News
Drug linked to cancer given to mothers years after supposed ban, ITV News finds
Up to 300,000 women are thought to have been prescribed Stilbestrol over four decades, as ITV News Social Affairs Correspondent Sarah Corker reports ITV News has discovered new evidence that a dangerous drug linked to cancer was given to mothers nearly a decade after it was supposed to have been banned. Now, in a major development, the Health Secretary Wes Streeting confirmed the government is considering enhanced cancer screening for those impacted by the use of Stilbestrol, also known as DES, and has vowed to 'look seriously at these allegations.' What is DES? Stilbestrol, also known as DES, was prescribed on the NHS to prevent miscarriage and to stop breast milk production from 1939 until the late 1970s. Marketed as a 'wonder drug' – a synthetic form of female hormone oestrogen – it has become one of the biggest drug disasters in the NHS's history. ITV News can reveal that doctors, regulators, and successive governments failed to act and protect women from the dangers. Other countries around the world, such as the United States, banned the drug in the 1970s as scientific studies linked the use of DES with breast, cervical, and vaginal cancers. In the UK, health authorities failed to do the same. The UK government claimed that in 1973, a letter was sent to all doctors telling them to stop using DES for pre-menopausal women, but ITV News has found dozens of women who say they were given it after that date, some as late as 1980. Susan Miller, 73, from London, believes she was given the drug in 1975 after the birth of her daughter to stop her breast milk – that is two years after the government said GPs were told to stop prescribing the drug. She recalls questioning the doctor about the drug's side effects whilst on the maternity ward, but told ITV News those concerns were dismissed. 'I was lied to. It's absolutely disgusting. I should have never been given the drug. It's ruined so many people's lives.' It's estimated that up to 300,000 women were prescribed Stilbestrol over four decades. Mrs Miller is among more than 200 people who have contacted ITV News after seeing our ongoing DES investigation. 'It's not just me, it's other women as well. They are walking around with time bombs in their breasts, because they don't even know, so they can't even get checked,' she said. The mother of one believes the effect on her health has been devastating. She's survived blood cancer but now has an aggressive form of breast cancer and is undergoing treatment. Stilbestrol was prescribed on the NHS to prevent miscarriage and to stop breast milk production from 1939 until the late 1970s. / Credit: Research suggests that DES mothers may have a 30% higher risk of breast cancer. If the drug was taken while pregnant, the harm can be passed down through the generations. Daughters exposed in the womb are at increased risk of clear cell cancer of the cervix and vagina and reproductive abnormalities. Despite the known increased risks, successive governments have failed to introduce enhanced screening, which women say would be 'lifesaving.' ITV News has also spoken to former midwives who recall administering DES on maternity wards as late as 1979, and doctors who later treated women with aggressive forms of cancer which have since been linked to DES exposure. 'Massive regulatory failure' In 1971, US scientists proved DES was unsafe for use on pre-menopausal women. The medicines watchdog, the MHRA, repeatedly told ITV News that in May 1973, 'the Committee on Safety of Medicines wrote to all doctors to advise against the use of DES in pregnancy and women who have not yet gone through menopause.' No evidence of that letter can be found. A series of Freedom of Information requests and internal reviews from ITV News to the MHRA were rejected. Our team has searched through hundreds of pages of public health records at the British Library and National Archives, and there is no evidence of that 1973 letter. In fact, there is no evidence to show that DES was withdrawn or restricted, despite mounting evidence of the drug's sinister side effects. Dr Sonia Macleod, from Oxford University and an expert on pharmaceutical safety, said, 'There are clear indications that more could and should have been done by the regulators at the time, and if you look at it in this way, that becomes a regulatory failure.' Dr Macleod believes the government bears ultimate responsibility for the impact on women. 'I think women have been hugely failed in the UK, and particularly because this was a drug that was developed through government funding,' she said. 'There must be accountability and responsibility. Compensation should come from the government. The impacts are horrendous and have been ignored and unseen. It is so wrong,' she said. Dr Sonia Macleod, from Oxford University and an expert on pharmaceutical safety. On the south coast in Bognor Regis, Mary Jarman believes she was given DES in 1977, years after warnings about the drug. Then aged 19, she was prescribed the pills by her GP to stop her breast milk after giving birth prematurely. Ms Jarman later suffered a severe reaction, resulting in emergency breast surgery. 'It was a drug that nobody should have had, and they realised what it was doing, they should have stopped it. But I think because I had an old family doctor, they just kept handing it out,' she said. Decades later, in her 40s, she developed cervical cancer and had a full hysterectomy. 'If that has caused all the trouble, now I can understand I wasn't just unlucky to have all those women's problems, it was all connected.' Mary Jarman believes she was given DES in 1977, years after warnings about the drug. Poor NHS record keeping and the casual way DES was given out means women may never know for sure what they were exposed to or the long-term impact it has had. There are growing calls for a nationwide investigation. There has still been no attempt to trace and inform those exposed to this dangerous drug, and limited research into the long-term health implications. While thousands of DES victims have sued pharmaceutical companies in the US, France, and the Netherlands, there have been no successful cases in the UK. In response to our investigation, Dr Alison Cave, MHRA Chief Safety Officer, said: 'We express our sympathies with those harmed by the historic use of Diethylstilbestrol (DES). 'We are continuing to invest significant resources to locate historical documentation relating to regulatory decisions on DES made in the 1970s, over 50 years ago. Due to the age and format of the records, this is a complex and time-consuming process. 'We are living now in a different regulatory era….Today, the requirement for patients to be directly provided with information about their medicine is underpinned by legislation.' A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said the Secretary of State has been clear that he will look seriously at these allegations. Health Secretary, Wes Streeting. For more information or support about the issues raised in this report, visit: Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
ITV News
2 days ago
- ITV News
Dangerous pregnancy drug linked to cancer given to mothers years after it was supposedly banned
• After Social Affairs Correspondent Sarah Corker's first investigation into Stilbestrol, women have come forward saying they were given the drug after its ban.
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Pregnancy drug given to 300,000 women linked to 30 per cent higher cancer risk
Women in the UK who took the pregnancy drug Diethylstilbestrol - also known as DES or Stilbestrol - could be screened by the NHS after studies uncovered a 30% higher risk of breast cancer Health Secretary Wes Streeting may start an enhanced screening programme after a pregnancy drug given to hundreds of thousands of women was linked to cancer. The minister was responding to an ITV News investigation into links between cancer cases and the drug Stilbestrol, also known as Diethylstilbestrol (DES). They revealed the drug was still being prescribed to mothers nearly a decade after being supposedly banned. It was prescribed to an estimated 300,000 women from 1939 until the late 1970s to prevent miscarriage and stop breast milk production. Research suggests women who took DES may have a 30% higher risk of breast cancer. If the drug was taken while pregnant, the harm can be passed down the generations with daughters exposed in the womb at increased risk of clear cell cancer of the cervix and vagina and reproductive abnormalities. The health secretary told ITV News Social Affairs correspondent Sarah Corker: 'There is more to do to look at this historic injustice.' On calls for enhanced cancer screening for mothers exposed to DES, the Health Secretary responded: 'I am certainly open to looking at that, that is one of many things that the government is looking at, in light of ITV's investigation.' DES has been described as a 'hidden thalidomide' - with the harm passed down 'generations'. An ITV News investigation has led to more than 100 women fearing their health has been damaged because of DES. Some who have come forward are suffering from "barbaric" pain and rare cancers - but it is feared there could be thousands more. Other countries around the world, such as the United States, banned the drug in the 1970s as scientific studies linked the use of DES with breast, cervical and vaginal cancers. But in the UK, health authorities failed to do the same. The UK government claimed a letter was sent to all doctors in 1973 telling them to stop using DES for pre-menopausal women, but ITV News said they had found dozens of women who say they were given it after that date, some as late as 1980. They also searched through hundreds of pages of public health records at the British Library and National Archives and there is no evidence of the 1973 letter. Susan Miller, 72, from London, believes she was given the drug in 1975 after the birth of her daughter to stop her breast milk – two years after the government said it was supposed to have been stopped. She questioned doctors about the drug's side effects whilst on the maternity ward but told ITV News her concerns were dismissed. She said: 'I was lied to. It's absolutely disgusting. I should have never been given the drug. It's ruined so many people's lives. 'It's not just me; it's other women as well. They are walking round with time bombs in their breasts, because they even don't know, so they can't even get checked.' The mother-of-one believes the effect on her health has been devastating. She's survived blood cancer but is now being treated for an aggressive form of breast cancer. In response to the ITV News investigation, a Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: 'Our sympathies are with anyone harmed by the historic use of Diethylstilboestrol (DES). 'The Secretary of State has been clear he will look seriously at these allegations, and the government will continue to consider enhanced screening for those impacted by the use of this drug.' Dr Alison Cave, MHRA Chief Safety Officer, told ITV: 'We express our sympathies with those harmed by the historic use of Diethylstilboestrol (DES). 'We are continuing to invest significant resource to locate historical documentation relating to regulatory decisions on DES made in the 1970s, over 50 years ago. Due to the age and format of the records, this is a complex and time-consuming process.'
ITV News
2 days ago
- Health
- ITV News
Drug linked to cancer given to mothers nearly a decade after it was banned, ITV News can reveal
Up to 300,000 women are thought to have been prescribed Stilbestrol over four decades, as ITV News Social Affairs Correspondent Sarah Corker reports ITV News has discovered new evidence that a dangerous drug linked to cancer was given to mothers nearly a decade after it was supposed to have been banned. Now, in a major development, the Health Secretary Wes Streeting confirmed the government is considering enhanced cancer screening for those impacted by the use of Stilbestrol, also known as DES, and has vowed to "look seriously at these allegations." What is DES? Stilbestrol, also known as DES, was prescribed on the NHS to prevent miscarriage and to stop breast milk production from 1939 until the late 1970s. Marketed as a 'wonder drug' - a synthetic form of female hormone oestrogen - it has become one of the biggest drug disasters in the NHS's history. ITV News can reveal that doctors, regulators, and successive governments failed to act and protect women from the dangers. Other countries around the world, such as the United States, banned the drug in the 1970s as scientific studies linked the use of DES with breast, cervical, and vaginal cancers. In the UK, health authorities failed to do the same. The UK government claimed that in 1973, a letter was sent to all doctors telling them to stop using DES for pre-menopausal women, but ITV News has found dozens of women who say they were given it after that date, some as late as 1980. Susan Miller, 73, from London, believes she was given the drug in 1975 after the birth of her daughter to stop her breast milk – that is two years after the government said GPs were told to stop prescribing the drug. She recalls questioning the doctor about the drug's side effects whilst on the maternity ward, but told ITV News those concerns were dismissed. 'I was lied to. It's absolutely disgusting. I should have never been given the drug. It's ruined so many people's lives.' It's estimated that up to 300,000 women were prescribed Stilbestrol over four decades. Mrs Miller is among more than 200 people who have contacted ITV News after seeing our ongoing DES investigation. 'It's not just me, it's other women as well. They are walking around with time bombs in their breasts, because they don't even know, so they can't even get checked,' she said. The mother of one believes the effect on her health has been devastating. She's survived blood cancer but now has an aggressive form of breast cancer and is undergoing treatment. Research suggests that DES mothers may have a 30% higher risk of breast cancer. If the drug was taken while pregnant, the harm can be passed down through the generations. Daughters exposed in the womb are at increased risk of clear cell cancer of the cervix and vagina and reproductive abnormalities. Despite the known increased risks, successive governments have failed to introduce enhanced screening, which women say would be 'lifesaving.' ITV News has also spoken to former midwives who recall administering DES on maternity wards as late as 1979, and doctors who later treated women with aggressive forms of cancer which have since been linked to DES exposure. 'Massive regulatory failure' In 1971, US scientists proved DES was unsafe for use on pre-menopausal women. The medicines watchdog, the MHRA, repeatedly told ITV News that in May 1973, "the Committee on Safety of Medicines wrote to all doctors to advise against the use of DES in pregnancy and women who have not yet gone through menopause." No evidence of that letter can be found. A series of Freedom of Information requests and internal reviews from ITV News to the MHRA were rejected. Our team has searched through hundreds of pages of public health records at the British Library and National Archives, and there is no evidence of that 1973 letter. In fact, there is no evidence to show that DES was withdrawn or restricted, despite mounting evidence of the drug's sinister side effects. Dr Sonia Macleod, from Oxford University and an expert on pharmaceutical safety, said, "There are clear indications that more could and should have been done by the regulators at the time, and if you look at it in this way, that becomes a regulatory failure." Dr Macleod believes the government bears ultimate responsibility for the impact on women. "I think women have been hugely failed in the UK, and particularly because this was a drug that was developed through government funding," she said. "There must be accountability and responsibility. Compensation should come from the government. The impacts are horrendous and have been ignored and unseen. It is so wrong," she said. Dr Sonia Macleod, from Oxford University and an expert on pharmaceutical safety. On the south coast in Bognor Regis, Mary Jarman believes she was given DES in 1977, years after warnings about the drug. Then aged 19, she was prescribed the pills by her GP to stop her breast milk after giving birth prematurely. Ms Jarman later suffered a severe reaction, resulting in emergency breast surgery. 'It was a drug that nobody should have had, and they realised what it was doing, they should have stopped it. But I think because I had an old family doctor, they just kept handing it out,' she said. Decades later, in her 40s, she developed cervical cancer and had a full hysterectomy. "If that has caused all the trouble, now I can understand I wasn't just unlucky to have all those women's problems, it was all connected." Mary Jarman believes she was given DES in 1977, years after warnings about the drug. Poor NHS record keeping and the casual way DES was given out means women may never know for sure what they were exposed to or the long-term impact it has had. There are growing calls for a nationwide investigation. There has still been no attempt to trace and inform those exposed to this dangerous drug, and limited research into the long-term health implications. While thousands of DES victims have sued pharmaceutical companies in the US, France, and the Netherlands, there have been no successful cases in the UK. In response to our investigation, Dr Alison Cave, MHRA Chief Safety Officer, said: "We express our sympathies with those harmed by the historic use of Diethylstilbestrol (DES). "We are continuing to invest significant resources to locate historical documentation relating to regulatory decisions on DES made in the 1970s, over 50 years ago. Due to the age and format of the records, this is a complex and time-consuming process. "We are living now in a different regulatory era….Today, the requirement for patients to be directly provided with information about their medicine is underpinned by legislation." look seriously at these allegations. Health Secretary, Wes Streeting.
