DR. WALKER

TUSKEGEE SYPHILIS EXPERIMENT: THE UNTOLD STORY

With the advent of syphilis disease, researchers journeyed into discovering the disease progression pattern and its outcome. Although several studies were conducted on this topic, during this period, the disease remained elusive and confusing to physicians. A research group from Alabama decided, however, to evaluate the effects of chronic, untreated syphilis on African Americans in order to more completely understand this disease and how it progressed. This led to the birth of the Tuskegee experiment which started in 1932. At this time, syphilis was considered a venereal and highly contagious disease with no known cure. This study included 600 African American men from Macon County, Alabama who were promised free medical care. These participants were mere peasant farmers, and most of them could not afford medical care on their own.

This program was spearheaded by doctors from the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) who informed the participants that the experiment aims to treat them for “bad blood,” which was a common term used to refer to a list of diseases. Among these men, 399 had active syphilis infection, while the other 201 were used as the placebos/control group.

They were monitored by the healthcare workers and were placed on mineral supplements and aspirin. A few years later, Penicillin was discovered to be effective in the treatment of syphilis, but these doctors prevented the participants from receiving the medication within the study. The doctors also went ahead to inform the local physicians in Macon County not to treat the participants of this study.

To access the full disease outcome of syphilis, the researchers denied the participants any form of treatment and they were allowed to die, lose their sight, become mentally deranged and experience other severe complications due to their untreated disease condition. In the mid-1960s, Peter Buxton, a PHS venereal disease investigator in San Francisco, discovered this Tuskegee experiment and showed his disapproval, pointing that the study is highly unethical and should be stopped immediately. After being reviewed by the PHS committee, the experiment was voted to continue with the aim of achieving the goal of the study, autopsies were conducted for the dead participants and the data analysis of the study was taken.

Not satisfied with the decision of the committee, Buxton leaked the information to his reporter friend and later published by Jean Heller in July 1972. This led to a massive public outrage forcing the shutdown of this experiment. At this point, about 28 participants have died, 100 were also reported dead via complications from the disease, and 40 were diagnosed with terminal syphilis. As a result of this unethical Tuskegee study, the African Americans developed lack of trust in Public Health officials and have been skeptical to any form of vaccination.

Just to be clear, this is the same CDC that is now mandating a therapy for almost 8 billion people. This is a drug that has never been tested and without follow-up to determine long-term complications. This is the same CDC that willingly helped this disease propagate in a group of people, specifically black people, in order to see the long-term effects. Again, they did so knowingly and willingly. Knowing this, I fully understand why people are averse to taking this synthetic material, cloaked as a vaccine, to prevent what appears to be the common cold.

References:

1. https://simple.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_syphilis_experiment
2. https://www.history.com/.amp/news/the-infamous-40-year-tuskegee-study