7 ms·

Thalidomide still casts a huge shadow across the FDA: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/woman-who-stood-between-america-and-epidemic-birth-defects-1

Thalidomide still casts a huge shadow across the FDA: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/woman-who-stood-between-america-and-epidemic-birth-defects-180963165/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/woman-who-stoo... It is the founding myth. As such it is institutionally very conservative about approving stuff. Now the question does become: what is the opportunity cost of that stance. How many people have died or had bad outcomes because medicine deemed safe in Europe was not approved by the FDA.

happyopossum 4y ago
> It is the founding myth It’s not a myth and not involved in the FDA’s founding, so that statement makes no sense.
- klodolph 4y ago
  > myth, n. a traditional story, especially one concerning the early history of a people The word “myth” does not necessarily mean “untrue”.
- diffeomorphism 4y ago
  No, it just means compound words sometimes mean something different than the sum of their parts. In particular a "founding myth" is neither a myth nor necessarily involved in the founding. Substitute "an important event in the history of" if you are confused.