Echoes of the Contergan Tragedy

Abstract

Although Hungary was fortunate, because it was not directly involved in the Thalidomide Tragedy, the case of it affected also the Hungarian Medical and Pharmaceutical researches. The most relevant articles were translated quickly and published in Hungarian (for Example some items by Lenz or Somers). Researches about teratogenic effects became more popular. The Hungarian Teratology Society was established in the end of 1970. Pharmacy licensing, ethical issues, the Western pharmaceutical industry and the responsibility of immoderate advertising were frequently occurring topics in the Hungarian medical literature in the Kádár Era after the Contergan Tragedy. The daily newspapers focused mainly on unique examples (for Example the Vandeput case or Sherri Finkbine’s story) and the milestones of the processes in Germany – they rarely reported the similar events in the United States or Japan. The journals published articles with sharp criticism toward the so-called ’Western’ pharmaceutical system, including the licensing, marketing.