poledriver
Bluelighter
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Veterans talk about lasting impacts of ‘guinea pig’ drug trials in Timor
THEY call it the “suicide pill” for a reason.
Those who take it claim to suffer horrific side effects including hallucinations, depression, anxiety, nightmares and thoughts of ending their own lives.
During the early 2000s it was effectively forced down the throats of Australian Defence Force personnel as a prevention for malaria. The pro blem was that those administering the treatment — and those taking it — didn’t properly understand the risks. And saying no was not an option.
The drug is Mefloquine, otherwise known as Lariam, and it has been linked to a number of suicides among veterans, one as recent as August.
Those who survived say they were the lucky ones, but luck is subjective. They still live with the demons that arrived shortly after their first dose and never left.
On Thursday, after the ADF absolved itself of responsibility, survivors spoke with news.com.au about their experiences. Their stories paint a picture of lasting pain and frustration.
‘TAKING MEFLOQUINE IS LIKE PLAYING RUSSIAN ROULETTE’
After a year-long inquiry into claims soldiers were “guinea pigs” for a drug manufacturer, the Defence Force claimed no responsibility for ongoing ill effects, despite admitting the drug “is associated with neuropsychiatric side-effects that, in rare cases, may become permanent”.
The ADF reviewed trials of the drug between 2000 and 2002 on soldiers serving in East Timor.
The final report was based on interviews with 21 witnesses and findings by internal experts only, critics say. It determined “there were very few severe adverse events”.
But a number of former diggers and their families told news.com.au the opposite. They said they either personally took the drug or had a family member take it. They said friends — soldiers who took the drug — ended their lives because of the dark thoughts circling inside their heads.
The wife of a soldier who was given a “loading dose” — three times the normal amount — before his tour of East Timor said her husband has dreams to this day about locals telling him to kill himself.
One former soldier, who did not wish to be named, called the ADF report a sham and a waste of time.
“The ADF were never going to find themselves guilty of coercion in a human drug trial,” he said.
“I was affected by Mefloquine but didn’t make a submission to the inquiry because I believed it to be a waste of time. I was right.”
A former Colonel, Ray Martin, who is the most senior soldier to speak out against his former employer, said his friend recently suicided after years of unanswered cries for help.
He said giving Mefloquine to soldiers was “a bit like Russian roulette”.
“It’s the luck of the draw,” he said. “For some people it doesn’t do anything (negative), but if you’re predisposed to mental illness, one pill can damage you and have a lasting effect.”
THOUSANDS OF SOLDIERS TOOK PART
It’s still not clear exactly how many soldiers are suffering from using the drug. Part of the reason for that is the symptoms of Mefloquine toxicity are similar to those of post traumatic stress disorder.
Col. Martin, who now helps dozens of sufferers from his home in Townsville, says there could be as many as 500, but even if there’s 50 that’s too many.
He says around 5000 diggers signed a consent form prior to travelling to Timor and different reports suggest anywhere between 10 and 30 per cent could be experiencing adverse reactions.
“If it’s 10 per cent of 5000 that’s way too many. Drug manufacturers say it’s 1 per cent. Even 1 per cent is 50 people at grave risk.”
One of those people is Chris Salter. He lives every day with anxiety and suicidal thoughts. They started almost immediately after his second trip to Timor in September, 2001, when he signed the form and allowed doctors to put him on Lariam.
His wife, Lavina, told news.com.au her husband has never been the same.
“He had three tablets over five days,” she said. “He suffers really bad memory issues and unfortunately only remembers bits and pieces (of the tours).
“He started getting really bad insomnia, then when he did sleep he dreamt about East Timorese people telling him to kill himself. At the time he was hallucinating and had visions and progressively over the years the anxiety and the psychosis has come along.”
Mr Salter’s case is the first public case the ADF has accepted responsibility for. Part of the reason for that is that he was administered the drug despite a history of depression, something doctors acknowledge should never have happened.
Mrs Salter quit her job to care for her husband full time. She calls herself his “security blanket” but there’s only so much she can do.
She said he was devastated when the ADF handed down its findings. He’s not alone.
“You have no idea how many (former soldiers) are so angry about this. For a lot of the guys, it’s shit because they’re made out now to be liars.”
She said they don’t care so much about acknowledgment but they do need help.
“These guys just want to live somewhere close to a normal life.”
Cont -
http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/he...r/news-story/b9c736efcb3e5687635bd51406c47596
THEY call it the “suicide pill” for a reason.
Those who take it claim to suffer horrific side effects including hallucinations, depression, anxiety, nightmares and thoughts of ending their own lives.
During the early 2000s it was effectively forced down the throats of Australian Defence Force personnel as a prevention for malaria. The pro blem was that those administering the treatment — and those taking it — didn’t properly understand the risks. And saying no was not an option.
The drug is Mefloquine, otherwise known as Lariam, and it has been linked to a number of suicides among veterans, one as recent as August.
Those who survived say they were the lucky ones, but luck is subjective. They still live with the demons that arrived shortly after their first dose and never left.
On Thursday, after the ADF absolved itself of responsibility, survivors spoke with news.com.au about their experiences. Their stories paint a picture of lasting pain and frustration.
‘TAKING MEFLOQUINE IS LIKE PLAYING RUSSIAN ROULETTE’
After a year-long inquiry into claims soldiers were “guinea pigs” for a drug manufacturer, the Defence Force claimed no responsibility for ongoing ill effects, despite admitting the drug “is associated with neuropsychiatric side-effects that, in rare cases, may become permanent”.
The ADF reviewed trials of the drug between 2000 and 2002 on soldiers serving in East Timor.
The final report was based on interviews with 21 witnesses and findings by internal experts only, critics say. It determined “there were very few severe adverse events”.
But a number of former diggers and their families told news.com.au the opposite. They said they either personally took the drug or had a family member take it. They said friends — soldiers who took the drug — ended their lives because of the dark thoughts circling inside their heads.
The wife of a soldier who was given a “loading dose” — three times the normal amount — before his tour of East Timor said her husband has dreams to this day about locals telling him to kill himself.
One former soldier, who did not wish to be named, called the ADF report a sham and a waste of time.
“The ADF were never going to find themselves guilty of coercion in a human drug trial,” he said.
“I was affected by Mefloquine but didn’t make a submission to the inquiry because I believed it to be a waste of time. I was right.”
A former Colonel, Ray Martin, who is the most senior soldier to speak out against his former employer, said his friend recently suicided after years of unanswered cries for help.
He said giving Mefloquine to soldiers was “a bit like Russian roulette”.
“It’s the luck of the draw,” he said. “For some people it doesn’t do anything (negative), but if you’re predisposed to mental illness, one pill can damage you and have a lasting effect.”
THOUSANDS OF SOLDIERS TOOK PART
It’s still not clear exactly how many soldiers are suffering from using the drug. Part of the reason for that is the symptoms of Mefloquine toxicity are similar to those of post traumatic stress disorder.
Col. Martin, who now helps dozens of sufferers from his home in Townsville, says there could be as many as 500, but even if there’s 50 that’s too many.
He says around 5000 diggers signed a consent form prior to travelling to Timor and different reports suggest anywhere between 10 and 30 per cent could be experiencing adverse reactions.
“If it’s 10 per cent of 5000 that’s way too many. Drug manufacturers say it’s 1 per cent. Even 1 per cent is 50 people at grave risk.”
One of those people is Chris Salter. He lives every day with anxiety and suicidal thoughts. They started almost immediately after his second trip to Timor in September, 2001, when he signed the form and allowed doctors to put him on Lariam.
His wife, Lavina, told news.com.au her husband has never been the same.
“He had three tablets over five days,” she said. “He suffers really bad memory issues and unfortunately only remembers bits and pieces (of the tours).
“He started getting really bad insomnia, then when he did sleep he dreamt about East Timorese people telling him to kill himself. At the time he was hallucinating and had visions and progressively over the years the anxiety and the psychosis has come along.”
Mr Salter’s case is the first public case the ADF has accepted responsibility for. Part of the reason for that is that he was administered the drug despite a history of depression, something doctors acknowledge should never have happened.
Mrs Salter quit her job to care for her husband full time. She calls herself his “security blanket” but there’s only so much she can do.
She said he was devastated when the ADF handed down its findings. He’s not alone.
“You have no idea how many (former soldiers) are so angry about this. For a lot of the guys, it’s shit because they’re made out now to be liars.”
She said they don’t care so much about acknowledgment but they do need help.
“These guys just want to live somewhere close to a normal life.”
Cont -
http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/he...r/news-story/b9c736efcb3e5687635bd51406c47596
