When the government began allowing hemophiliacs to self-inject blood-clotting agents in 1981, Satoru Ienishi thought "spring had finally come" to a life plagued by problems stemming from the condition.
At that time, Ienishi began enjoying life without several trips to a hospital each week for injections -- unaware of the tragic consequences for the nation's hemophiliacs that would be caused by tainted imported blood products.
"Besides having to inject the coagulant myself once a week, I was able to live like a normal person for the first time at the age of 20," said Ienishi, now a 40-year-old member of the House of Representatives. He had earlier been told by doctors that he might not live to the age of 20.