VIOXX WITHDRAWAL: FDA TO JOIN AUDIO CONFERENCE ON NOVEMBER 10 Mon, 8 Nov 2004 To hear from FDA Office of New Drugs Acting Director Sandra Kweder, MD, in an interactive discussion of what the withdrawal of the blockbuster drug means for the agencys drug safety programs, the COX-2 inhibitor class…
Acting FDA Head Temporarily Drops NCI Duty – WashPost Sat, 1 Oct 2005 Who is kidding who? The appointment of a long time Bush friend, Dr. Andrew Eschenbach, head of the National Cancer Institue, as acting commissioner of the Food and Drug Adminsitration reeks of conflicts of interest–not just one…
Federal Court (Illinois) Rejects FDA-Daniel Troy Preemption Argument Fri, 11 Nov 2005 In yet another federal case (Zikis v Pfizer) involving the company’s failure to warn physicians and the public about the increased risk of suicide effects for pediatric patients prescribed Zoloft, the court rejected Pfizer’s argument that it didn’t need to war…
40 Psychiatrists Lobby FDA to Legitimize Drug Restraints for Aggression Mon, 21 Mar 2005 At first glance, a Newsday article–Hot Under the Collar?– might appear as a hilarious parody of bio-psychiatry. It is not. “Recently, 40 scientists met with two FDA officials to make a case for testing treatments specifically…
FDA Scientist Won’t Present New Pain Drug Data – FDA to Create Independent Drug Safety Board Tue, 15 Feb 2005 A culture of intimidation prevents FDA safety officers from disclosing important safety information about widely marketed drugs. Reuters reports: “Criticism of how the FDA monitors the after-market safety of drugs…
Conflicts of Interest Taint UK Gov panel investigating SSRI Wed, 19 Mar 2003 An article from the UK Guardian sheds light on how the credibility of an expert investigative government appointed committee is corrupted by financial conflicts of interest. Mounting complaints from patients and the UK watchdog organization, Social Audit,…
Testing Psychotropic Drugs in Children April 30, 2002 David Healy, MD University of Wales College of Medicine April 30th 2002. The background against which this paper is prepared is that in 1997 I organized, chaired and wrote up the recommendations from an International Roundtable Meeting for the British Association for…
Congressional Investigations Senate Finance Committee Investigates FDA Aug 4: Sen. Grassley letter (416 K pdf) to 8 drug companies requests list of all antidepressant tests on children (1/1/1990–7/23/2004) Aug 3: Drug safety Hearings-Sept-Congress/ FDA – Lilly Plans to Disclose Data Jul 15: Senate Letter to FDA re: disclosure of risks…
How Pharma Took Over Medicine: Research and Practice – BMJ / NYT Fri, 3 Jan 2003 In today’s New York Times Dr. Erin Marcus writes: “Medicines aren’t like shampoo or perfume.” But they’re being hawked on TV as if they were just another ‘enhancer’–when in fact, they come with glossed…
Natrecor found to worsen kidney function, hasten death – NYT Tue, 17 May 2005 Natrecor, a drug approved by the FDA for treating patients with heart failure, is being widely prescribed off label for unapproved uses. The drug is prescribed for so-called “tune-ups” in outpatient clinics – although that use…
Pfizer Statements RE: Bextra, Celebrex, Neurontin Shown to be Lies Fri, 08 Apr 2005 The New York Times reports that “as recently as Tuesday [Pfizer] assured Wall Street that sales of Celebrex and Bextra would soon rebound. It was the latest in a string of announcements by the company regarding…
Tim Russert of Meet the Press Has Been Deceived about Thimerasol Sun, 7 Aug 2005 FYI & Action Deception appears to be the name of the game when the facts reveal that current medical practices are doing major harm to Ameerica’s children. The media is often deceived by medical “experts”…
