General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Mass Grave of Dead Babies in Ireland Used as Guinea Pigs for Pharmaceutical Company [View all]YarnAddict
(1,850 posts)I knew a breast cancer patient who was in the trials for tomoxifen. Was she exploited? You know what? When she found out she was in the treatment group instead of the control, she was HAPPY that she was getting the experimental drug.
Ever hear of adriamycin? It's a cancer drug. Highly toxic. Lots of really, really bad side effects. But it cures people. When this drug was in the experimental stage, no one knew what it was going to do. Was there "malice" involved in administering that drug to people who were probably already terminal?
This is the same thing--without the consent, which I've already said was despicable. In the time period we are talking about, children, especially those in close quarters, routinely died of diseases that are now considered minor, or highly treatable. If there was a vaccine available, that might be able to prevent measles, or smallpox, or something else, wasn't it worth it to give it a try in hopes of saving some lives?