U.S. sanctions take toll on the ill in Iran as medicine becomes scarce

The first wave of U.S. sanctions against Iran was looming when doctors gave Aram Rawanshad the bad news.

It was early June when she learned she was suffering from endometriosis, a painful disease that occurs when tissue grows outside the uterus. It was too late for surgery, and doctors warned her to act fast before the disease spread.

Rawanshad, a 42-year-old writer from Karaj, Iran, was given a prescription and urged to stock up before supplies ran out.

She refused.

“I told the pharmacist that if I buy more than one month’s supply, other patients would be deprived,” she said.

Though it was a kind gesture, it came at a cost. The following month, when she returned to the pharmacy, the medicine was sold out.

Read the full article and more in The San Diego Union-Tribune.