Bad Blood. A Cautionary Tale
Description
In the 1960s, new treatments known as clotting factor concentrates were expected to transform hemophilia into a manageable condition. But these pooled-plasma drugs also carried a hidden risk of viral contamination, and by the mid-1980s, 10,000 hemophiliacs had been infected with HIV and 15,000 with hepatitis C - amounting to the most lethal medical disaster in U.S. history. This program investigates the origins and impact of the tragedy. Using expert interviews, patient testimony, and archival materials, the film asks: Was the FDA too close to the pharmaceutical industry to protect the public? What is the flip side to the argument that profitability drives research? How has the hemophilia community moved forward? The facts speak for themselves in this story of grief, recovery, and inspiration - a story of survivors fighting to change a system that failed them.
Runtime
82 min
Subjects
- Diseases (446)
- Infection (258)
- Business ethics (382)
- Epidemiology (150)
- Medical ethics (151)
- Communicable diseases (311)
- Blood (71)
- Disease management (27)
Genre
Date of Publication
[2010], c2010
Database
Films on Demand
Direct Link
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