• Thalidomide was available in Brazilian pharmacies from March 1959 until June 1962 under the trade names “Ectiluran”, “Ondasil” and others. Some pharmacies sold the drug even until 1965.

• At least 547 Thalidomide babies were born in Brazil up to 1965.

• Thalidomide had an early comeback in Brazil. In 1965 the government re-introduced it for the treatment of leprosy, where it has shown to be very effective. The drug has remained on the Brazilian market ever since. Only one government-owned company is allowed to manufacture Thalidomide and officially it is only available on prescription there. It is given out for free by the Ministry of Health through governmental health care facilities. However, in many parts of the country the drug is handed out without the necessary restrictive controls, resulting in a high number of new Thalidomide cases, the so called second and third generation. Next to India, Brazil has the highest number of leprosy victims worldwide, with 30,000 to 40,000 new cases every year.

• In 1976 lawsuits against the Brazilian government and the drug companies began. In 1983 all survivors, including the ones that were born after 1965, received a very small compensation amount (between US$189 and US$815, depending on the severity of their condition) in form of a monthly pension, soon to be eaten up by inflation.

• Since the 1980s about 50 Brazilian Thalidomiders (born before 1965) have additionally been receiving money from the German Contergan Foundation.

• In 2009 the Brazilian government awarded 360 Thalidomide survivors compensation of up to 200,000 Real (US$100,000, about 100 times of what they had received up to that point.)

• Between 2005 and 2010 alone, about 100 babies were born with Thalidomide-typical birth injuries in Brazil, a recent study found. During that period close to 5.9 million pills were distributed across the country. More Thalidomide babies were born since then. How many exactly is not known.

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