1960's Medical Advances

Picture yourself in the 1960’s. You hear of the new, groundbreaking medical discoveries, such as the polio vaccination being used, or the development of the measles vaccine. Though it is not as advanced as the technology of today, the medicine of the 1960’s aided in creating the path that led to the ways in which we save lives in the present.
Before getting into the events themselves, it is important to understand bits of information such as when they took place, who was involved, and what exactly brought them to an inevitable close. Beginning with dates, 1961 is the year that started off many of the important medical discoveries for this decade. U.S. Public Health Service begins large scale use of Sabin vaccine.Which shows what event set up …show more content…
One of such events was the thalidomide tragedy. As described by the “Helix Magazine”, “The drug interfered with the babies' normal development, causing many of them to be born with phocomelia, resulting in shortened, absent, or flipper-like limbs.” Many people had their lives adversely affected by this drug; It had a lasting effects on the children born with such deformities. So as can be imagined, it was a very significant part of medical studies at the time. The president and the press praised FDA inspector Frances Kelsey. She prevented the approval of thalidomide in the united states, despite being pressured by the company and her supervisors. Another example of a major event would be the announcement that tobacco is a disease and cancer-causing substance, being made in 1964. According to Surgeon General's 1964 Report: Making Smoking History”,”On a Saturday morning 50 years ago tomorrow, then Surgeon General Luther Terry made a bold announcement to a roomful of reporters: cigarette smoking causes lung cancer and probably heart disease, and the government should do something about it.” Clearly, this claim was significant. It shed light on the damage tobacco products cause, thus saving many lives in the coming years. The third event that shall be addressed is the enactment of the Fair Packaging and Labeling act. The Fair …show more content…
Because of the actions of Frances Kelsey, we understand and to not have to deal with the effects of such thalidomide. As stated by the “Helix Magazine”, “The tragedy surrounding thalidomide and Kelsey’s wise refusal to approve the drug helped motivate profound changes in the FDA.” As was clearly said, changes in the FDA were made for the better in the future, such changes are apparent in the present. We now also have the knowledge that we do about thalidomide so a similar crisis is not likely to occur. The discoveries of Dr. Favaloro are important to methods of treatment to this day.The first recorded performance of the life saving surgery that was used back in the 1960’s is still used to this day and has helped us develop more advanced technology and ways to treat the condition. The Fair Packaging and Labeling act are still in effect. “Purpose of the Act: The FPLA is designed to facilitate value comparisons and to prevent unfair or deceptive packaging and labeling of many household "consumer commodities."” Businesses today must put proper labeling on their packages, which allows people today to continue to make educated decisions. Events and discoveries from the sixties come into play in today’s world of modern

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