Health secretary Wes Streeting has described our findings as “extremely shocking” and said his department is looking “very seriously at the allegations”, as ITV News Social Affairs Correspondent Sarah Corker reports
Generations of women are calling for an urgent inquiry into the historic use of a breast milk drug that’s been linked to cancer.
Last month, an ITV News investigation revealed that victims of the forced adoption scandal were exposed to Stilbestrol, commonly known as DES, to dry up their breast milk after their babies were taken.
However, the scale of harm caused may be much greater than first thought, as the controversial drug was also widely used across the NHS to treat several other issues, including preventing miscarriages.
Doctors and academics have estimated that between 10,000 and 300,000 women in the UK may have been exposed to it before it was banned in the late 70s, due to its sinister side effects.
The health secretary Wes Streeting has described our findings as “extremely shocking” and said his department is looking “very seriously” at the allegations.
If you or anyone you know has been affected by this issue, get in touch
Have you been impacted? Tell us your story.
After more than 50 years of silence, Ann Andic is sharing her story for the first time after seeing previous ITV News reports on forced adoption.
In 1969, Ann was pregnant and unmarried. In the weeks leading up to her son’s birth, the 19 year old was sent away to a mother and baby home run by Anglican nuns in north London where she worked in the laundries and was told to pray for forgiveness.
Her son was placed in foster care at six weeks old. Desperate to keep him, Ann worked two jobs to save up enough money to find them a home.
But against her wishes, she says he was placed for adoption by the Church of England’s Children’s Society and social workers pressured her to sign the legal papers.
“I didn’t want to let him go. I loved him. They said it’s in his best interest. He’ll be well looked after by a loving mother and father. You can’t provide a father…and they said if I truly loved him, I’d sign the papers,” she said.
For Ann, who is now 76, there has been a double tragedy. She believes she may have been given the controversial drug Stilbestrol to dry up her breast milk.
“It was given to every single one of us as we left….they said to make us comfortable, they would give us an injection and some tablets to stop the breast milk, and I’m sure I said, ‘well, what is it?’ And they said, oh, don’t worry about that. It’s something, it will help you.”
It was withdrawn for use as a lactation suppressant in the late 70s due to its links to breast and cervical cancer and concerns about the risk of blood clots. Ann wants to know if the drug is to blame for her health problems; in her late 20s, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer, which left her unable to have any more children.
“After they did the surgery, the person who came round said it’s a good job you’ve completed your family because you won’t be able to have any more children. That was very upsetting because I thought I, I haven’t completed my family. My family’s been taken from me.”
DES was used from the 1940s to the late 1970s to treat several issues, including to dry up breast milk after birth, and it was also given to pregnant women to prevent miscarriage.
The carcinogenic potential of DES was no secret. From the 1950s onwards, there was an awareness that the drug’s side effects could be incredibly harmful, yet it was still used for another two decades across the NHS.
If taken when pregnant, the impact can be passed down the generations. Evidence suggests that DES daughters, whose mothers took the drug, are at a higher risk of reproductive cancers, as well as other side effects including fertility issues.
Dr Wael Agur, a Consultant Urogynaecologist in Glasgow who has treated women exposed to DES, wants an enhanced screening programme and UK government-led investigation into the scale of exposure.
Dr Wael Agur, a Consultant Urogynaecologist in Glasgow, speaking to ITV News
“The DES scandal is much larger than anyone would expect,” Dr Agur told ITV News. “On a national level, a public inquiry is needed, to find out the size of the problem. There will be women who still do this day do not know they were exposed to it,” he said.
“It’s important that identify these women and enforced the message that they are at high risk and they need more frequent screening.”
There is a lack of medical research into the long-term impact of the drug on mothers who took it postnatally to dry up breast milk.
Pauline Elliott believes she was given DES in hospital in Southampton in 1975.
A married mother who’d just had to twins, she remembers the casual way it was given out on the ward without prescription.
“That’s what struck me, they were handed out like sweets,” she said. “No explanation, just ‘you don’t want to breast feed’, so take these pills and that’ll sort it out’. I find that quite shocking really.”
Ms Elliott went on to become a nurse herself and believes those exposed to the drug should be offered regular cancer screening.
Pauline Elliott is calling for those who were exposed to the drug to be offered cancer screening
“I’m angry that something was given to me that could have detrimental effects on my health. I’m angry that the government hasn’t recognised this,” she said.
One of the problems is that after so many decades, medical notes have been destroyed or lost, even the medicines regulator has admitted there are no proper records to trace who was given this drug.
In response to our ongoing investigation, the government has pledged to look into the issue.
The Health Secretary Wes Streeting told ITV News: “My department is looking very seriously at the allegations and the impact and the consequences for people’s lives, and of course your report also raised many other issues about historic treatment particularly of young single mothers.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said his department was taking the allegations very seriously and would aim to hold people to account
Streeting added that the scandal is a “truly shocking and a shameful moment in our country’s history”
Around the world, there have been hundreds of court cases and compensation payments to those exposed to DES.
Yet in the UK, poor NHS record keeping and the casual way that the drug was given out to women, means thousands of women may never know for sure what impact DES has had on their lives.
In relation to Ann’s testimony, a spokesperson for the Church of England said: “We are deeply sorry to hear these distressing accounts from those who were affected by mother and baby homes, including those with links to the Church of England.
“While such practices may have been widely accepted then, we now recognise the profound and lasting impact they have had on so many lives. To those who have suffered, we reiterate our heartfelt sorrow and regret.”
A spokesperson for The Children’s Society said: “We are sorry for the pain and distress experienced by many women and families due to adoption practices of the past.
“At the time, cultural norms and attitudes placed immense pressures on unmarried mothers, leaving far too many with little choice but to place their babies for adoption.”
If you have been affected by the issues in this report, please see the help links below:
- ·Adoption Apology – provides information on forced and coerced adoption in the UK and around the globe.
- Safe Spaces – an independent service offering confidential support to survivors of Church-related abuse on 0300 303 1056 or on their website.
- NHS – If you need help for a mental health crisis or emergency, you should get immediate expert advice and assessment. Guidance on what support services are available for you can be found on the NHS website.
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