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Contaminated blood inquiry: 'Thousands given death sentence'

BBC Richard WarwickBBC
Richard Warwick said lives were "gambled with" to save money

A man born with haemophilia says he and thousands of others were given a "death sentence" in the form of contaminated blood.

Richard Warwick was given blood products to treat his clotting disorder at a school for disabled children.

The inquiry into the scandal heard he was infected with HIV and hepatitis C.

An earlier hearing was told that of 89 haemophiliac boys at Treloar's in Hampshire who were offered treatment onsite, only 16 are currently alive.

The inquiry, currently sitting in Leeds, is examining what has been called "the worst treatment scandal in the history of the NHS".

Some 4,800 people with haemophilia were infected with hepatitis C or HIV in the 1970s and 1980s. More than 2,000 are thought to have died.

Treloar's school
Mr Warwick was given blood products at an NHS clinic at Treloar's

Mr Warwick, 53, who lives near Malton, North Yorkshire, attended Treloar's boarding school between 1976 and 1982.

He told the hearing he received regular Factor VIII treatments administered at an NHS clinic based at the school.

Speaking to the BBC, Mr Warwick said: "To a lot of us it was a wonder drug, you didn't have to go to hospital for treatment any more.

"In reality, it ended the lives of 3,000 people and gave all of us death sentences."

The inquiry, which is moving around the UK, heard Mr Warwick has been unable to have a career and was advised not to have a child with his partner due to the risk of the baby being born HIV positive.

In a statement, Mr Warwick said: "This is a result of the decisions made by those who are paid to do better.

"In the comfort of their offices they pushed papers across desks, set aside the warnings and decided to gamble with other people's lives with the goal of saving money.

"It is hard to avoid the conclusion that we were deemed expendable, collateral damage."

SPL Packs of bloodSPL
The inquiry is looking into why 4,800 haemophiliacs were infected with hepatitis C or HIV

The hearing was told he was diagnosed with HIV in 1984 but wasn't made aware until a GP told him four years later.

Mr Warwick added: "These viruses which I've contracted through no fault of my own have curtailed every life opportunity that I could imagine."

The inquiry concludes its hearings in Leeds on Friday before moving to Edinburgh.