THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, June 1, 1995 TAG: 9506010011
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 39 lines
Two articles on women's health issues appeared on the same page (news, May 16). The first said lawsuits resulting form Dow Corning's breast implants are in jeopardy. Although the breast implants have been tested, the experiment was not performed long enough to reveal the eventual consequences (death, removal of breast, deformities, cancer). These will cause a lifetime of physical and psychological problems for countless women.
The second article says the mifepristone abortion drug was tested on 150,000 women in France and that is has no known side effects. What the article doesn't say is how long the French have been using this drug and what results occurred with the test.
The article is full of hyperbole and deceit. It says abortion can be done ``in the first weeks of pregnancy,'' but the RU486 abortion can be performed eight weeks from the last menstrual period. The article states that fetal tissue is expelled with ``mild to moderate cramping,'' but one client needed pain pills and another was told which pain pills to use. Though a case-study participant described the abortion as more natural, there is nothing natural about it.
The study involved 2,100 women, yet the case studies for the article are in their early 20s. What of older women and teenagers? Rather than making RU486 the panacea for the abortion industry. the article should be presenting the facts of the study. It is unlikely this experiment will be thorough, since the findings are to be revealed early next year. How many women will be injured physically and psychologically from an RU486 abortion?
MARILOU SCHINDLER
Virginia Beach, May 20, 1995 by CNB