GSK Sales Reps told NOT to Divulge Paxil Data / Merck Withdraws Vioxx Thu, 30 Sep 2004 The Associated Press reports: “Merck pulled Vioxx after admitting studies showed the drug raised the risk of heart attack. As recently as August, Merck “strongly” disagreed with studies showing the drug increased heart…
FDA Critics Slam Plan for Safety Reform – Nature Thu, 17 Feb 2005 This is smoke and mirrors and musical chairs. Vera Sharav Alliance for Human Research Protection, New York http://www.nature.com/news/2005/050214/full/050214-11.html Published online: 17 February 2005; | doi:10.1038/news050214-11 FDA critics slam plan for safety reform Emma Marris Calls grow for…
Pfizer PainKiller Bextra withdrawn from market, New Boxed Warnings for Celebrex Thu, 07 Apr 2005 Pfizer’s withdrawal of the COX-2 pain reliever, Bextra, from the market because of potentially lethal side effects, including increased risk of cardiovascular malfunction and severe rash, validates Dr. David Graham’s analysis. This FDA medical expert…
Published Clinical Trials Contradict Claimed Benefits – Front Page Pill Pushers Tue Aug 16, 2005 Two items from the BMJ A systemic review of 22 randomized clinical trials of Alzheimer’s disease treatments in the BMJ found the studies to have suffered from flawed methodology and to have revealed that commonly…
The Crawford Resignation Mystery Sat, 24 Sep 2005 Merrill Goozner of Center for Science in the Public Interest provides insight into what may lie behind the sudden resignation of FDA Commissioner, Lester Crawford. Goozner surggests, “One possible clue to the administration’s thinking comes from the appointment of Andrew von Eschenbach,…
Merck / Johnson & Johnson/ Lilly-Zyprexa: $690 Million settlement / a Flowering of Diabetes Drugs Fri, 10 Jun 2005 A cluster of news reports about three pillars of the pharmaceutical industry– Merck, Eli Lilly, and Johnson & Johnson–leave no doubt that this industry has shown its disregard for the welfare…
Former FDA Commissioner says FDA lost public trust Mon, 17 Oct 2005 The FDA’s failure to ensure drugs are properly tested in trials designed to detect serious adverse effects, and the agency’s failure to require follow-up post-marketing studies to be reasonably secure in the knowledge that no lethal drugs are unleashed on the public has…
Doctor Tells Pfizer Sales Rep who promoted Celebrex: “Have You No Shame?” Sun, 26 Dec 2004 An opinion piece by Dr. Marc Siegel, an internist and professor at New York University School of Medicine, expresses the anger and dismay many physicians in the US feel about having been misled by…
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-20/1108104141208160.xml Star-Ledger 14 deaths force halt to drug in Canada Hyperactivity remedy called threat to kids Friday, February 11, 2005 BY CAROL ANN CAMPBELL Safety concerns have clouded the future of another blockbuster medication, this one a hyperactivity drug prescribed to 700,000 Americans, most of them children. Health officials in…
Cymbalta Contract: How Eli Lilly Influences What Prescribers Learn about Lilly’s drugs Fri, 5 Aug 2005 The Wall Street Journal reports that not only do drug manufacturers control what the public is told about patented drugs, but companies, such as Eli Lilly and Pfizer dictate by contract what doctors are…
THE CONSTANT GARDENER–John le Carre’s novel about Big Pharma gets rave reviews Sat, 3 Sep 2005 Constant Gardener, the movie based on the novel by John le Carre, about the pharmaceutical industry’s immoral and even criminal activities, opened nationwide. It has already received rave reviews. Below are two reviews…
FDA says it Screened Panelists for Conflicts of Interest Tue, 1 Mar 2005 Bloomberg News reports that the Center for Science in the Public Interest had identified not 10, but 27 panelists on FDA’s advisory panel who had financial ties to drug manufacturers. Last week The New York Times reported…
