Primodos 2024: The Quest for Justice Continues (22 May 2024)

Summary

In this article, Sharon Hartles looks at the ongoing fight for justice by families affected by the hormone pregnancy test (HPT) Primodos. She discusses the impact of new evidence and advocacy efforts, highlighting the resilience of those involved in the quest for accountability. She also considers the absence of consideration of patients and family members affected by HPTs from the recent Hughes Report, which looked at redress options for the other two medical interventions covered by the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review.

Sharon Hartles is a member of the Harm and Evidence Research Collaborative at the Open University. Additionally, she is affiliated with the Risky Hormones research project, an international collaboration in partnership with patient groups.

You can read the blog here.

Related reading

• First Do No Harm. The report of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review (8 July 2020)
• The Hughes Report: Options for redress for those harmed by valproate and pelvic mesh (Patient Safety Commissioner for England, 7 February 2024)
• Reflections on The Hughes Report: Pelvic mesh, sodium valproate, hormone pregnancy tests and options for redress (a blog from Patient Safety Learning)
• A Bitter Pill: Primodos, The Forgotten Thalidomide (APPG on Hormone Pregnancy Tests, 27 February 2024)
• Patient Safety Spotlight interview with Marie Lyon, chair of the Association for Children Damaged by Hormone Pregnancy Tests