During the height of the AIDS crisis, one man sues in court to try Dr. Davis’ goat serum — which has not been approved by the FDA. A desperate mother decides it’s better to ask forgiveness than permission. She takes her little girl, and ventures halfway across the country to meet the doctor. She later tells reporters that she had to take a drastic step to get her hands on the treatment but has no regrets. Then: a ray of hope. The 7-year-old girl begins to recover after taking the doctor’s unapproved serum, and her doctors at the National Institutes of Health take notice. So, why didn’t the NIH investigate further? And why won’t the girl, now all grown up, answer Grant’s messages?

Serum is a limited run podcast production of WHYY’s The Pulse and Local Trance Media.

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For questions or tips related to Serum, please contact Maiken Scott at [email protected] or Grant Hill at [email protected]