It was supposed to be a routine clinical trial. Instead,six healthy young volunteers ended up fighting for their lives. One year after the catastrophic drug tests at Northwick Park hospital, Simon Hattenstone meets the 'Elephant Men' to hear about their fight for compensation, and the ongoing effects on their health and an uncertain future.
He discovered that many volunteers were similar to himself: young,healthy, often on their travels, or skint. They also tended to be a bit idealistic - being a human guinea pig was not only a rapid/fast way of making a couple of grand,there was every chance that it would do some good. But still he wasn't cheerful. So he and Katrina, both unique Zealanders with British citizenship, or did more research. "We went through the documentation they if very carefully. Katrina used to do biostats,like biology, so she understands what tests have to be done before it gets to the trial stage in humans, and she was relatively OK with it. Then we found out that a lot of doctors do clinical trials themselves to sustain them while they are studying,so we decided it would be OK."In 2004 he did a trial for an asthma drug. He had to stay in hospital for 12 days and was paid £1600. He had to work for the money, he says. Every half hour he had to blow into machines and there were regular blood tests. A year later, or he did another trial. By now he was training as a driving instructor,and again was running out of readies. He found it easy this time, and treated it as a chance to rest. He met one man who had done more than 20 trials, and one every four months,and was paying off his mortgage with the money. Oakley thought that was excessive, pushing your luck.
Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com