I want to know about Thalidomide tragedy's complete story.. Is it used now?

Answer 1

Thalidomide was used as very effective treatment for morning sickness in pregnant women. It was only after thousands of women had taken it that it became apparant that in some cases it produced a rare birth defect called phocomelia in which the limbs are deformed and shortened. The hands and feet appear to be connected directly to the trunk looking somewhat like flippers. It was, of course withdrawn from the market but has in recent years found a role in the treatment of certain conditions like graft vs host disease in transplant recipients and as an adjunct to cancer chemotherapy. It is, of course, essential to ensure that the patient is not going to become pregnant during the treatment or anytime after.

Answer 2

Thalidomide is a story about how the FDA helps America. Thalidomide was used in Europe for women who were having nausea due to early pregnancy. The FDA would not approve thalidomide for use in the US, because they have a long testing procedure. People were angry about this, saying "why not, they use it in Europe and it works."

Well, unfortunately, babies in Europe started getting born with little flippers for arms and legs. OMG it was tragic and horrible. The birth defect was due to using thalidomide during pregnancy. It causes birth defects. Thanks to the FDA, that did not happen in the US.

Thalidomide is a good drug used for other purposes, it is okay to use if someone is not pregnant, but it must NEVER be taken in pregnancy. This was a terrible tragedy.

Answer 3

There is a particularly good entry on Thalidomide in wikipedia - see below.

It is currently being considered for use in cancer treatment.

Answer 4

Please see the web pages for more details on Thlidomide.
Thalidomide is used to treat and prevent skin conditions caused by erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL).