Satoru Ienishi and his family

The ministry earlier had put the number of such institutions at 7,004, based on reports from Mitsubishi Pharma Corp., the successor to Green Cross Corp., which sold the U.S.-made coagulant fibrinogen.

Of the 6,933 listed, 6,611 have been contacted by the ministry and reported that they had stocked the coagulant.

Some of the hospitals said they have records of using the product while others told the ministry they never used it.

The revelation follows a December 2002 information disclosure request by Diet member Satoru Ienishi, a hemophiliac who was infected with HIV and the hepatitis C virus from tainted blood products.

It is estimated that between 1980 and 2001, 290,000 people were given fibrinogen to treat such conditions as hemophilia. More than 10,000 people are believed to have been infected.

The Japan Times Weekly: Dec. 18, 2004
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