Blood Matters

Title

First
Broadcast

Repeated

Comments

Colin's Story

20231012

20240222 (R4)

Colin Smith was a happy, energetic baby despite being diagnosed with the severe bleeding disorder, haemophilia, when he was ten months old. He was treated by doctors in Cardiff with the revolutionary new blood clotting product, known as Factor VIII.

Imported from the US, Factor VIII was much easier to administer than previous treatments for bleeding disorders. Colin's parents were able to store the product in the fridge at home and inject their son themselves.

But when Colin was two, the doctors told his parents that their son had tested positive for HIV, the virus that causes Aids. His subsequent illness and eventual death from Aids in January 1990, aged just seven, devastated the whole family's lives.

In the fourth episode of her series, Blood Matters, the writer and broadcaster Blanche Girouard, speaks to Colin's parents, Janet and Colin senior, about coping with having a child infected with HIV - and also with the stigma that that carried.

The little boy infected with HIV through contaminated blood products when he was just two.

Colin Smith was just two years old when he tested positive for HIV. A haemophiliac, he'd been treated with contaminated Factor VIII blood product.

Doctor Knows Best

20231011

20240221 (R4)

Later this year, the Infected Blood Inquiry will publish its final report. In the third episode of her series, the writer and broadcaster Blanche Girouard looks at the role of doctors in what has become known as the worst scandal in the history of the NHS.

“It was a different era, ? one doctor who worked in a large busy haemophilia centre in London in the 1970s and 80s, tells Blanche. “The culture was very different, we doctors were in a sense kings, ? another former senior haemophilia specialist says.

Blanche also hears from one couple who were told by doctors to give up any plans to have children after the husband, a haemophilia sufferer, was infected with HIV-contaminated Factor VIII.

Why some haemophilia patients were not told for years that they'd been infected with HIV.

Some patients with haemophilia were kept in the dark for years about the risks from US-made Factor VIII blood clotting products. We ask doctors how this could have happened.

Later this autumn, the Infected Blood Inquiry will publish its final report. In the third episode of her series, the writer and broadcaster Blanche Girouard looks at the role of doctors in what has become known as the worst scandal in the history of the NHS.

“It was a different era, ? one doctor who worked in a large busy haemophilia centre in London in the 1970s and 80s, tells Blanche Girouard. “The culture was very different, we doctors were in a sense kings, ? another former senior haemophilia specialist says.

Left Behind

20231013

20240223 (R4)

Both of Lauren Palmer's parents died of Aids in August 1993. Her father, who suffered from severe haemophilia, had been infected with the HIV virus through contaminated Factor VIII blood products when he was a boy. He'd passed the virus on to his wife.

Following her parents' death, Lauren was sent to live with relatives and told not to talk about what had happened to her family. At the time, she says, Aids was “a death sentence, a dirty disease'.

In the final episode of her series Blood Matters, ahead of the publication later this year of the final report of the Infected Blood Inquiry, the writer and broadcaster Blanche Girouard speaks to Lauren about losing her family, friends and home in one fell swoop. She tells Blanche why she has joined the campaign calling on the government to give full compensation to those who lost a parent or parents, or a child, because of contaminated Factor VIII clotting products.

Lauren Palmer lost both her parents because of infected blood products, when she was nine.

Lauren Palmer's whole world fell apart when both her parents died because of HIV-infected blood products in 1993. She was just nine years old.

The Wonder Drug

20231009

20240219 (R4)

During the 1970s and 80s thousands of people in the UK who were suffering from haemophilia received a revolutionary treatment to stop them from bleeding. The new blood product, known as Factor VIII, was imported from the US and could be administered much more conveniently than previous NHS treatments.

“It was a miracle, ? recalls Andy Evans who was started on Factor VIII in 1981, at the age of three. But no one told Andy's parents, or the families of other children with haemophilia, that the US product carried a potentially deadly health risk.

Later this year, the Infected Blood Inquiry, set up by the then Prime Minister Theresa May to look at the circumstances that led to thousands of NHS patients being given contaminated blood and blood products, will release its final report.

In this first episode of Blood Matters, the broadcaster and writer Blanche Girouard hears from two men, both haemophiliacs, whose lives were dramatically changed by Factor VIII.

A revolutionary treatment promises new hope for haemophilia sufferers and their families.

When a new treatment for blood disorders reaches the UK, haemophilia patients and their doctors welcome the ‘wonder drug'. But soon they are proven horribly wrong.

The Wonder Drug Is Poisoned

20231010

20240220 (R4)

In the 1970s and 80s, doctors in the UK began treating patients who were suffering from haemophilia with a new blood product, which could be administered more conveniently than previous treatments.

The new Factor VIII product was imported from the US and required the pooled blood plasma of a very large group of blood donors. But that meant that any infectious disease that a single donor carried, could immediately contaminate the whole batch.

In the second episode of her series, the broadcaster and writer Blanche Girouard speaks to a former pupil at the Lord Mayor Treloar School in Alton, Hampshire, where boys with haemophilia were regularly treated with American Factor VIII. More than 120 boys became infected with HIV and hepatitis through contaminated batches of the blood product - more than 70 have since died.

Archive from ITV Archives

Haemophilia patients learn they've been given blood products infected with HIV.

After being given a brand-new American product to treat their bleeds, young haemophilia sufferers are told the grim news – that some of them have been infected with HIV.

Episodes

Title	First Broadcast	Repeated	Comments
Colin's Story	20231012	20240222 (R4)	Colin Smith was a happy, energetic baby despite being diagnosed with the severe bleeding disorder, haemophilia, when he was ten months old. He was treated by doctors in Cardiff with the revolutionary new blood clotting product, known as Factor VIII. Imported from the US, Factor VIII was much easier to administer than previous treatments for bleeding disorders. Colin's parents were able to store the product in the fridge at home and inject their son themselves. But when Colin was two, the doctors told his parents that their son had tested positive for HIV, the virus that causes Aids. His subsequent illness and eventual death from Aids in January 1990, aged just seven, devastated the whole family's lives. In the fourth episode of her series, Blood Matters, the writer and broadcaster Blanche Girouard, speaks to Colin's parents, Janet and Colin senior, about coping with having a child infected with HIV - and also with the stigma that that carried. The little boy infected with HIV through contaminated blood products when he was just two. Colin Smith was just two years old when he tested positive for HIV. A haemophiliac, he'd been treated with contaminated Factor VIII blood product.
Doctor Knows Best	20231011	20240221 (R4)	Later this year, the Infected Blood Inquiry will publish its final report. In the third episode of her series, the writer and broadcaster Blanche Girouard looks at the role of doctors in what has become known as the worst scandal in the history of the NHS. “It was a different era, ? one doctor who worked in a large busy haemophilia centre in London in the 1970s and 80s, tells Blanche. “The culture was very different, we doctors were in a sense kings, ? another former senior haemophilia specialist says. Blanche also hears from one couple who were told by doctors to give up any plans to have children after the husband, a haemophilia sufferer, was infected with HIV-contaminated Factor VIII. Why some haemophilia patients were not told for years that they'd been infected with HIV. Some patients with haemophilia were kept in the dark for years about the risks from US-made Factor VIII blood clotting products. We ask doctors how this could have happened. Later this autumn, the Infected Blood Inquiry will publish its final report. In the third episode of her series, the writer and broadcaster Blanche Girouard looks at the role of doctors in what has become known as the worst scandal in the history of the NHS. “It was a different era, ? one doctor who worked in a large busy haemophilia centre in London in the 1970s and 80s, tells Blanche Girouard. “The culture was very different, we doctors were in a sense kings, ? another former senior haemophilia specialist says.
Left Behind	20231013	20240223 (R4)	Both of Lauren Palmer's parents died of Aids in August 1993. Her father, who suffered from severe haemophilia, had been infected with the HIV virus through contaminated Factor VIII blood products when he was a boy. He'd passed the virus on to his wife. Following her parents' death, Lauren was sent to live with relatives and told not to talk about what had happened to her family. At the time, she says, Aids was “a death sentence, a dirty disease'. In the final episode of her series Blood Matters, ahead of the publication later this year of the final report of the Infected Blood Inquiry, the writer and broadcaster Blanche Girouard speaks to Lauren about losing her family, friends and home in one fell swoop. She tells Blanche why she has joined the campaign calling on the government to give full compensation to those who lost a parent or parents, or a child, because of contaminated Factor VIII clotting products. Lauren Palmer lost both her parents because of infected blood products, when she was nine. Lauren Palmer's whole world fell apart when both her parents died because of HIV-infected blood products in 1993. She was just nine years old.
The Wonder Drug	20231009	20240219 (R4)	During the 1970s and 80s thousands of people in the UK who were suffering from haemophilia received a revolutionary treatment to stop them from bleeding. The new blood product, known as Factor VIII, was imported from the US and could be administered much more conveniently than previous NHS treatments. “It was a miracle, ? recalls Andy Evans who was started on Factor VIII in 1981, at the age of three. But no one told Andy's parents, or the families of other children with haemophilia, that the US product carried a potentially deadly health risk. Later this year, the Infected Blood Inquiry, set up by the then Prime Minister Theresa May to look at the circumstances that led to thousands of NHS patients being given contaminated blood and blood products, will release its final report. In this first episode of Blood Matters, the broadcaster and writer Blanche Girouard hears from two men, both haemophiliacs, whose lives were dramatically changed by Factor VIII. A revolutionary treatment promises new hope for haemophilia sufferers and their families. When a new treatment for blood disorders reaches the UK, haemophilia patients and their doctors welcome the ‘wonder drug'. But soon they are proven horribly wrong.
The Wonder Drug Is Poisoned	20231010	20240220 (R4)	In the 1970s and 80s, doctors in the UK began treating patients who were suffering from haemophilia with a new blood product, which could be administered more conveniently than previous treatments. The new Factor VIII product was imported from the US and required the pooled blood plasma of a very large group of blood donors. But that meant that any infectious disease that a single donor carried, could immediately contaminate the whole batch. In the second episode of her series, the broadcaster and writer Blanche Girouard speaks to a former pupil at the Lord Mayor Treloar School in Alton, Hampshire, where boys with haemophilia were regularly treated with American Factor VIII. More than 120 boys became infected with HIV and hepatitis through contaminated batches of the blood product - more than 70 have since died. Archive from ITV Archives Haemophilia patients learn they've been given blood products infected with HIV. After being given a brand-new American product to treat their bleeds, young haemophilia sufferers are told the grim news – that some of them have been infected with HIV.