The Virus and the Vaccine: The True Story of a Cancer-Causing Monkey Virus, Contaminated Polio Vaccine, and the Millions of Americans Exposed

by Debbie Bookchin and Jim Schumacher

Book Overview

Jonas Salk's polio vaccine has taken on an almost legendary quality as a medical miracle, for it largely eradicated one of the most feared diseases of the 20th century. But the story of the vaccine has a dark side, one that has never been fully told before... Between 1954 and 1963, close to 98 million Americans received polio vaccinations contaminated with a carcinogenic monkey virus, now known as SV40. A concerted government effort downplayed the incident, and it was generally accepted that although oncogenic to laboratory animals, SV40 was harmless to humans. But now SV40 in showing up in human cancers, and prominent researchers are demanding a serious public health response to this forgotten polio vaccine contaminant. A gripping medical detective story, The Virus and the Vaccine raises major questions about vaccine policy.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312278721
• ISBN13: 9780312278724
• Release Date: April 2004
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press
• Length: 400 Pages
• Weight: 1.61 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.2" x 9.7"

Customer Reviews

Page Turner!

It perhaps seems that a book written about developing polio vaccines would be boring but this reads like an exciting story -which it was! I could not put it down. It starts with really interesting background of how horrific polio outbreaks were and the relationship of the polio harmed FDR to the development of serious polio vaccine research.There is just so much interesting from the frontlines such as the incredible number of monkeys used in research and in the manufacture of the vaccines, women scientists in high places, the rivalries and it goes on. Highly recommend.