The EpiPen and Food Allergies (from Drug Story)

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Today we’re switching it up. We’re sharing an episode from the new podcast Drug Story. In each episode, science journalist and self-described “public health nerd” Thomas Goetz goes deep on the story of a single drug — what it treats, how it came to be, and what it reveals about the business of health and disease.

On this episode: the EpiPen, a device you’ll find in classrooms, on airplanes, in glove compartments — basically everywhere — because the EpiPen can be a literal life-saver for people with severe allergies.

And of course, the EpiPen is also one of the most infamous examples of pharmaceutical profiteering gone bananas.

That part of the story makes us especially geeked to share this episode.

And there are more threads here — on the drug’s discovery, on the science of severe food allergies, and on what researchers have learned about preventing them — that Goetz does a great job of weaving together.

If you like it, new episodes of Drug Story come out every week.

We’ll be back with more Arm and a Leg in a few weeks. Meanwhile, don’t forget to help us by filling out our quick survey.

Here’s a transcript of this episode.

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