U.S. CODE

U.S. Code

§ 283a-3. Establishment of program regarding DES

(a) In general

The Director of NIH shall establish a program for the conduct and support of research and training, the dissemination of health information, and other programs with respect to the diagnosis and treatment of conditions associated with exposure to the drug diethylstilbestrol (in this section referred to as “DES”).

(b) Education programs

In carrying out subsection (a), the Director of NIH, after consultation with nonprofit private entities representing individuals who have been exposed to DES, shall conduct or support programs to educate health professionals and the public on the drug, including the importance of identifying and treating individuals who have been exposed to the drug.

After consultation with the Office of Research on Women’s Health, the Director of NIH, acting through the appropriate national research institutes, shall in carrying out subsection (a) conduct or support one or more longitudinal studies to determine the incidence of the following diseases or disorders in the indicated populations and the relationship of DES to the diseases or disorders:

(1) In the case of women to whom (on or after January 1, 1938) DES was administered while the women were pregnant, the incidence of all diseases and disorders (including breast cancer, gynecological cancers, and impairments of the immune system, including autoimmune disease).

(2) In the case of women exposed to DES in utero, the incidence of clear cell cancer (including recurrences), the long-term health effects of such cancer, and the effects of treatments for such cancer.

(3) In the case of men and women exposed to DES in utero, the incidence of all diseases and disorders (including impairments of the reproductive and autoimmune systems).

(4) In the case of children of men or women exposed to DES in utero, the incidence of all diseases and disorders.

(d) Exposure to DES in utero

For purposes of this section, an individual shall be considered to have been exposed to DES in utero if, during the pregnancy that resulted in the birth of such individual, DES was (on or after January 1, 1938) administered to the biological mother of the individual.

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