THE TAINTED BLOOD TRAGEDY, FORTY YEARS LATER

MONTREAL, Feb. 25, 2026 /CNW/ - More than forty years after the crucial events in Canada's tainted blood tragedy, a new documentary,  Du sang sur les mains , will begin streaming on Illico+ on February 26.

The four-part series is a harrowing chronicle of the events that led to the HIV infection of 1,100 Canadians, including 700 people with hemophilia, and thousands more with hepatitis C, and their tragic consequences. The story goes back and forth between Canada and France to tell how officials in the blood establishments in both countries ignored the early warnings and sacrificed lives for money, and were accused, years after the events, of criminal negligence in knowingly distributing tainted blood products.

The documentary interviews recipients of tainted blood and their families on both sides of the Atlantic. They tell the heart-rending stories of their infection, disclosure to loved ones, friends and colleagues, and how they fought for health, dignity and justice. They demonstrate incredible courage and resilience in confronting a dreaded disease which, in those early years, was accompanied by misinformation and intolerance.

We hear from physicians, journalists and politicians who were closely involved in the events and their aftermath. We learn how associations representing patients fought for public recognition of the extent of the tragedy, compensation for the victims, a commission of inquiry and, eventually, reform of the blood system with the bankruptcy of the Canadian Red Cross and the creation of Canadian Blood Services and Héma-Québec.

Today, forty years after the catastrophe came to light, and almost thirty years since the publication of the Final Report of the Commission of Inquiry on the Blood System in Canada, also known as the Krever Report, the Canadian Hemophilia Society (CHS) welcomes this documentary. In its 2026-2030 strategic plan, the CHS vows to "honour the legacy and history of the organization while embracing the future." At the height of the tragedy, the CHS promised that the death and suffering experienced by the members of our community would not be in vain.  Du sang sur les mains comes at an opportune moment when there are serious questions about governments' continued commitment, in Canada and abroad, to continued vigilance with regard to emerging pathogens, and their impact on the blood system and public health. The lessons of the tainted blood tragedy must never be forgotten.

About the Canadian Hemophilia Society, Quebec Chapter

The Quebec Chapter of the Canadian Hemophilia Society works to improve the health and quality of life of all people living in Quebec with inherited bleeding disorders and to find cures through research.

www.hemophilia.ca/en 

SOURCE Société canadienne de l'hémophilie/Canadian Hemophilia Society

Contact information: Canadian Hemophilia Society, Quebec Chapter, Aline Ostrowski, 514-848-0666 or 1-877-870-0666, ext. 103, [email protected]