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Summary A German company which invented birth defect drug apologised for the first time in 50 years.
A German company that invented the birth defect pregnancy drug thalidomide has issued its first apology in 50 years to thousands of people born with disabilities.The Grunenthal Group said in a statement today it regrets the consequences of the drug used to combat morning sickness which led to the birth of children without limbs during the 1950s and 1960s.But a British charity which represents victims of the drug in the UK has rejected the apology as insufficient and demanded compensation.Freddie Astbury, head consultant of the Thalidomide Agency UK, said Grunenthal needed to put their money where their mouth is rather than simply express regret.Mr Astbury, who was born in Chester in 1959 with no arms and no legs after his mother took the drug, said: Its a disgrace that its taken them 50 years to apologise.Grunenthal chief executive Harald Stock today said that the company had failed to reach out from person to person to the victims and their mothers over the past 50 years.He issued his companys apology at the unveiling of a bronze statue symbolising a child born without limbs because of thalidomide at the ceremony in the western German city of Stolberg, where the firm is based.By the time the drug was pulled from the market, more than 10,000 babies worldwide had been born with a range of disabilities caused by the drug.Many victims have only recently received compensation.Martin Johnson, director of the Thalidomide Trust, told the BBC that the company were still trying to perpetuate the myth that no-one could have known of the harm the drug could cause when there was, he said, much evidence that they did know.Mr Astbury believes Grunenthal are now apologising because of court proceedings brought by victims in Australia.He said: Being disabled is very expensive and Thalidomide people need help and care, and adaptations to their cars and homes.The Agency says there are 458 people currently in Britain affected by the drug, but that for every Thalidomide baby that lived there were 10 that died.In January 2010, the British Government expressed sincere regret for the decision to give the drug the stamp of approval and set up a funding scheme to help survivors cope.Thalidomide was originally prescribed as a wonder drug for morning sickness, headaches, coughs, insomnia and colds.Thalidomide babies often suffered missing or deformed limbs and extreme shortening of arms and legs, but the drug also caused malformations of the eyes and ears, genitals, heart, kidneys and digestive system.
