Independent, The (London), Jun 11, 2004
AFTER TWO days on Seroxat, 17-year-old Justin took a knife and slashed his arm and wrist, later tried to stab his younger brother and finally took an overdose of the tablets he had been prescribed after several years with ME and a low immune system.
"Why did he do that?" asks his mother, Toni. "He only ever answered, `I don't know'. I used to think if I hear those words coming out of this brilliant child again I will scream."
Justin's violence has fractured relations between Toni's three sons and she is still haunted by the 11 months she spent nursing her son back to health. "It was 11 months of seeing monsters and me holding him." Now 20, Justin is studying A-levels, heading to university and aiming to become a doctor.
Toni and her son are among 3,500 people in the UK hoping to join a legal action against GSK over Seroxat. Like the claims being made in a raft of lawsuits facing GSK in the US, their solicitor is claiming that Seroxat's side effects make it a defective drug for adults as well as under-18s.
Toni asks: "What is the difference between my son at 17 years and 364 days and at 18 years and one day?"
Copyright 2004 Independent Newspapers UK Limited
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