British Govt: Two Women Died After Taking RU 486 Abortion Drug

British Govt: Two Women Died After Taking RU 486 Abortion Drug

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 19, 2004

London, England (LifeNews.com) -- Over the weekend, the British government announced that two women died after taking the dangerous abortion drug RU 486, also known as mifepristone.

Melanie Johnson, a British public health official, admitted that the Committee on Safety of Medicines has received information about two women who died following using the abortion drug, which has been legal in the U.K. since 1991.

Johnson made the information available in a reply to an inquiry from Jim Dobbin, a member of the British parliament from the Labor Party and the chairman of the Parliamentary all-party Pro-Life group. She said the committee had received two reports of "suspected fatal reactions in association with the use of Mifegyne [RU-486]."

No other information about the women's deaths was made available, including when the women died.

"The reporting of a suspected adverse drug reaction does not necessarily mean that the drug was responsible," Johnson said, according to the London Telegraph newspaper. "Many factors, such as the medical condition that is being treated, other pre-existing illnesses or other medications might have contributed."

Nuala Scarisbrick of the British pro-life group LIFE believes it is likely that the abortion drugs caused the women's deaths and that other deaths may not have come to light yet.

"I hope this tragic news serves as a warning to women about just how dangerous these powerful drugs are," Scarisbrick said in a statement.

"If these women had not taken RU 486 they would probably be alive now -- and so would their babies. There is such a conspiracy of silence about the after-effects of abortion that LIFE is sure that there are other deaths that have not been reported," Scarisbrick added.

News of the women's deaths follows closely on the heels of the death of California teenager Holly Patterson, who died after taking the abortion drug given to her by a Planned Parenthood facility.

In November, a county coroner's office report confirmed that the use of RU 486 resulted in an incomplete abortion that led to uterine infection and caused Holly's death.

Though the FDA has only approved the abortion drug to be used up to seven weeks into the pregnant, Planned Parenthood distributes it to women who are as many as nine weeks pregnant.

Women are given different dosages of the drug than what was approved under the FDA protocol. They also take the second pill at home and often vaginally rather than at the abortion facility and orally.

Some of these "off-label" uses have prompted pro-life advocates to encourage the Food and Drug Administration to pull the drug from the market.

Approximately 20,000 abortions in England each year involve abortion drugs.

"All methods of abortion damage women physically and emotionally, but this method if possible, even more traumatic than the others. Women with problems in pregnancy need the loving care and help to continue pregnancy that LIFE gives, not abortion, and not death," Scarisbrick concluded.

Despite the deaths, abortion advocates in Britain want rules regarding the drugs to be minimized and for the abortion drugs to be made more readily available.

Related web sites:
LIFE - http://www.lifeuk.org


Enter your email address to receive news from LifeNews.com via email. Do you prefer to receive news daily or weekly? Daily Weekly Do you favor or oppose abortion? Favor Oppose Click here to make a PayPal donation to LifeNews.com!	British Govt: Two Women Died After Taking RU 486 Abortion Drug by Steven Ertelt LifeNews.com Editor January 19, 2004 London, England (LifeNews.com) -- Over the weekend, the British government announced that two women died after taking the dangerous abortion drug RU 486, also known as mifepristone. Melanie Johnson, a British public health official, admitted that the Committee on Safety of Medicines has received information about two women who died following using the abortion drug, which has been legal in the U.K. since 1991. Johnson made the information available in a reply to an inquiry from Jim Dobbin, a member of the British parliament from the Labor Party and the chairman of the Parliamentary all-party Pro-Life group. She said the committee had received two reports of "suspected fatal reactions in association with the use of Mifegyne [RU-486]." No other information about the women's deaths was made available, including when the women died. "The reporting of a suspected adverse drug reaction does not necessarily mean that the drug was responsible," Johnson said, according to the London Telegraph newspaper. "Many factors, such as the medical condition that is being treated, other pre-existing illnesses or other medications might have contributed." Nuala Scarisbrick of the British pro-life group LIFE believes it is likely that the abortion drugs caused the women's deaths and that other deaths may not have come to light yet. "I hope this tragic news serves as a warning to women about just how dangerous these powerful drugs are," Scarisbrick said in a statement. "If these women had not taken RU 486 they would probably be alive now -- and so would their babies. There is such a conspiracy of silence about the after-effects of abortion that LIFE is sure that there are other deaths that have not been reported," Scarisbrick added. News of the women's deaths follows closely on the heels of the death of California teenager Holly Patterson, who died after taking the abortion drug given to her by a Planned Parenthood facility. In November, a county coroner's office report confirmed that the use of RU 486 resulted in an incomplete abortion that led to uterine infection and caused Holly's death. Though the FDA has only approved the abortion drug to be used up to seven weeks into the pregnant, Planned Parenthood distributes it to women who are as many as nine weeks pregnant. Women are given different dosages of the drug than what was approved under the FDA protocol. They also take the second pill at home and often vaginally rather than at the abortion facility and orally. Some of these "off-label" uses have prompted pro-life advocates to encourage the Food and Drug Administration to pull the drug from the market. Approximately 20,000 abortions in England each year involve abortion drugs. "All methods of abortion damage women physically and emotionally, but this method if possible, even more traumatic than the others. Women with problems in pregnancy need the loving care and help to continue pregnancy that LIFE gives, not abortion, and not death," Scarisbrick concluded. Despite the deaths, abortion advocates in Britain want rules regarding the drugs to be minimized and for the abortion drugs to be made more readily available. Related web sites: LIFE - http://www.lifeuk.org