Worse than the Disease

This book examines four medical innovations that epitomize the pitfalls of progress: DES, a synthetic oestrogen prescribed to millions of women to prevent miscarriages, which produced devastating side effects; the artificial heart, an extraordinary technological feat fraught with ethical and financial uncertainties; the 1976 swine flu immunization programme, a nationwide effort against a phantom epidemic; and genetic engineering, a revolutionary scientific technique that alters life itself. Dutton and the contributors trace the history of the four case studies, reveal the human choices that govern medical and scientific innovation and explore the political, economic, and social factors that influence those choices. In the process, they reveal a deep gulf between the priorities of medical innovation and the concerns of the general public. They then propose concrete policy changes to help bridge that gulf.