MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with 'big pharma'. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 01:48:56 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5159742&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F08%2F21%2Fseroxatpaxil-addiction-studied-by-glaxo-or-not%2F This a repost – originally from March 2007. It’s worth reading again because of recent legal stuff that I can’t talk about at the moment. You might think that after all the years of doctors and patients all around the world saying Seroxat is highly addictive and Glaxo saying “Oh no it isn’t” – that Glaxo would simply undertake the definitive study to prove us all wrong and to show the world once and for all really how safe and non-addictive Seroxat is… well, it turns out Glaxo has already done this – or maybe they haven’t….? Confused – now read on. Finding a copy of the Paxil Protest website once again has been great. It’s a veritable treasure trove of fantastic stories and link, such as this one: The following exchange is f... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5159742 Sun, 21 Aug 2011 07:47:07 +0100 5159742 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5096211&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39261&url=http%3A%2F%2Fvactruth.com%2F2011%2F08%2F02%2Ftime-to-say-enough%2F There comes a time in everyone’s consciousness and life when one realizes that too many things are going off beam and that life is becoming more problematic day by day, especially now when it comes to our health, which probably is our most valued personal possession, and which seems to be undermined in various and sundry ways and fashions. Let’s examine some of the medical ‘fashions’ for starters, since most healthcare consumers think that those professionals wearing white coats topped with stethoscopes really know what they are talking about.  White Coats and Cigarettes First, and foremost, I’d like to remind everyone that MDs were proud to recommend Camels cigarettes as the brand most doctors preferred and smoked. Don’t believe me; check out this advertisement http://www.y... vactruth.com blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5096211 Tue, 02 Aug 2011 13:14:44 +0100 5096211 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5051166&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F07%2F22%2Fthe-murdochs-and-glaxo-the-parallels%2F I’ve been following the News International story with great interest. What surprised me today is the news that people think it’s wrong that James Murdoch paid off Gordon Taylor (£700,000 according to some estimates) and  included a gagging order in the agreement to stop the truth from coming out. Of course, Murdoch did this long before the details of the case were in the public domain, so he was spending big in order to try and avoid exactly what’s happening at this very moment. There seems to be outrgage that someone would do such a thing… well, I’ve got news for you – Glaxo has been doing for years and still does.. Here’s an old post from 2007: Buying our silence Buying our silence – that’s what it’s all about when Glaxo opens its cheque... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5051166 Fri, 22 Jul 2011 13:37:12 +0100 5051166 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5036528&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34844&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftheicarusproject.net%2Falternative-treatments%2Fharm-reduction-guide-to-coming-off-meds-greek-translation The Harm Reduction Guide to Coming Off Psychiatric Drugs, published by The Icarus Project and Freedom Center, is now available in Greek - thanks to the dedicated volunteer translation work of Marianna Kefallinou.You can download the Greek version here.Οδηγός Μείωσης της Βλάβης για τη Διακοπή των Ψυχιατρικών Φαρμάκων (Source: The Icarus Project - Navigating the Space Between Brilliance and Madness) The Icarus Project - Navigating the Space Between Brilliance and Madness blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5036528 Fri, 15 Jul 2011 21:25:03 +0100 5036528 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4992692&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fsupreme-court-data-mining-ok-even-when-physician-privacy-is-compromised%2F2011.07.01 The Supreme Court has sided with Big Pharma in their challenge to the Vermont Law limiting the pharmaceutical Industry’s access to physician prescribing information. The nation’s high court handed down a verdict Thursday in the Sorrell v. IMS Health case, striking down by a 6-3 vote a 2007 Vermont law that that bans the practice of data mining — the sale and use of prescriber-identifiable information for marketing or promoting a drug, including drug detailing — unless a physician specifically gives his or her permission to use the information. Apparently, Big Pharma’s right to “free speech” trumps my right to privacy. How getting access to my prescribing information has anything to do with free speech is beyond me.  In the twisted logic of the pro-business, anti-citizen Sup... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4992692 Fri, 01 Jul 2011 12:00:14 +0100 4992692 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4872390&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F05%2F27%2Fthe-seroxat-paxil-pil-over-the-years-%25e2%2580%2593-ch-ch-ch-changes-re-post%2F Here’s an old post (December 30, 2009) which contains some important information: It’s at this time of year that we all look forward to a new decade and look back on the years that have brought us to where we are today. I thought it would be useful to look back at 20 years of Glaxo spin – to review the information supplied by Glaxo over the past 20 years to patients like you and me. The PIL – the Patient Information Leaflet is what I’m talking about. As you download the PDFs and read them, please remember each of the leaflets is referring to EXACTLY the same drug – hard to believe. I’m very happy to be able to supply what is a truly historic document – the very first Seroxat PIL – click on the link to download it – Original Seroxat PIL 1990. This is a relic of a byg... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4872390 Fri, 27 May 2011 07:00:37 +0100 4872390 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4803473&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F05%2F08%2Fstan-kutcher-stan-kutcher-stan-kutcher%25e2%2580%25a6-postscript%2F Sad to say poor Stan didn’t get elected in the recent poll in Halifax, Canada. He failed by an impressively large margin. Still, I’m sure he’ll be back at some point and perhaps by then we will have seen Study 329 retracted… it is still on the books, still saying, “Paroxetine is generally well tolerated and effective for major depression in adolescents. It’s a testimonial to the worst of times, and it needs to be retracted for the same reason that the statues and monuments of despots are destroyed when their regimes finally fall”. So says a retired physchiatrist, 1 Boring Old Man, in this article. I have to agree that it’s high time  Study 329 was retracted – and Marty Keller and Stan and the rest of the doctors that put their names to it... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4803473 Sun, 08 May 2011 12:57:20 +0100 4803473 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4797763&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=34591&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.badscience.net%2F2011%2F05%2Fasking-the-wrong-question-how-crap-research-gets-drugs-to-market%2F Ben Goldacre, The Guardian, Saturday 7 May 2011 Some of the biggest problems in medicine don’t get written about, because they’re not about eyecatching things like one patient’s valiant struggle: they’re protected from public scrutiny by a wall of tediousness. Here is one problem that affects millions of people. What if we had rubbish evidence [...] (Source: badscience) badscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4797763 Sat, 07 May 2011 17:40:36 +0100 4797763 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4768222&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F04%2F30%2Fstan-kutcher-stan-kutcher-stan-kutcher%2F … have I got you attention now Stan? Now running for public office in Halifax, Stan is clearly not happy to have his past ‘experience’ brought up. A Halifax website, The Coast, ran this apology – and took down the article it refers to – no doubt after Stan’s lawyers had threatened to sue: On April 28th, The Coast published an article online and in print, regarding Dr. Stan Kutcher. In that article, The Coast referenced, without limitation or criticism, statements to the effect that, Dr. Kutcher, being one of the authors of a research paper, distorted the outcome measures and essentially lied. The Coast retracts those statements and without reservation, apologizes to Dr. Kutcher for having published them. We recognize that Stan Kutcher is the federal Libe... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4768222 Sat, 30 Apr 2011 10:28:30 +0100 4768222 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4684356&cid=t_99409_88_f&fid=38129&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Flifeinthefastlane%2FWZHV%2F%7E3%2Foah4J7BW6Qo%2F Thanks to the wonders of modern science, not only are we able to 'medically' justify every ache, pain, whinge, grimace and gripe we suffer - but we are also offered a cure at the same time! (Source: Life in the Fast Lane) Life in the Fast Lane blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4684356 Wed, 06 Apr 2011 08:56:21 +0100 4684356 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4560269&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fbig-herbas-research-deficit-why-it-isnt-about-the-money%2F2011.03.08 This is a guest post from Erik Davis of Skeptic North. ********** Bankers, Buyouts & Billionaires: Why Big Herba’s Research Deficit Isn’t About The Money It’s a scene from the blogosphere that’s become all too familiar. A skeptic challenges a natural health product for the lack of an evidentiary base. A proponent of that product responds that the skeptic has made a logical error — an absence of evidence is not evidence of absence, and in such a scenario it’s not unreasonable to rely on patient reporting and traditional uses as a guide. The skeptic chimes back with a dissertation on the limits of anecdotal evidence and arguments from antiquity — especially when the corresponding pharma products have a data trail supporting their safety and efficacy. The pr... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4560269 Tue, 08 Mar 2011 22:00:09 +0100 4560269 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4560283&cid=t_99409_88_f&fid=38129&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Flifeinthefastlane%2FWZHV%2F%7E3%2Fx2HOtSmjTvQ%2F Jelinek and Brown announce that Emergency Medicine Australasia is taking a stand against drug company advertising. The LITFL team applauds! (Source: Life in the Fast Lane) Life in the Fast Lane blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4560283 Tue, 08 Mar 2011 00:00:54 +0100 4560283 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4517170&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fwhen-dietary-supplements-are-used-as-medicines%2F2011.02.24 I was surprised to get this e-mail from a reader: Surely, Dr. Hall, the public mania for nutritional supplements is baseless. All the alleged nutrients in supplements are contained in the food we eat. And what governmental agency has oversight responsibility regarding the production of these so-call nutritional supplements? Even if one believes that such pills have value, how can the consumer be assured that the product actually contains what the label signifies? I have yet to find a comment on this subject on your otherwise informative website. My co-bloggers and I have addressed these issues repeatedly.Peter Lipson covered DSHEA (The Diet Supplement Health and Education Act) nicely. It’s all been said before, but perhaps it needs to be said again — and maybe by writing this post... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4517170 Thu, 24 Feb 2011 14:00:56 +0100 4517170 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4501788&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35772&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshutah.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F20%2F2011-ssri-related-deaths%2F It’s Sunday, 20 February 2011 51 days into the year 43 incidents listed already   SSRI Related Deaths 2011   Does anyone care? HOW LONG MUST THIS LIST GET BEFORE GOVERNMENTS AND PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES ACKNOWLEDGE THE GLOBAL PROBLEMS SURROUNDING SSRIs? IT’S NOT ABOUT MONEY, STOCKS, SHARES! IT’S ABOUT HUMAN LIFE STOP * LOOK * LISTEN [...] (Source: SEROXAT WEBLOG) SEROXAT WEBLOG blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4501788 Sun, 20 Feb 2011 11:25:12 +0100 4501788 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4498369&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F19%2Fconfirmation-that-there-is-a-difference-between-seroxatpaxil-and-other-ssris%2F A very topical subject this – it seems that Seroxat is actually different from other SSRIs… but I’m worried that it has come just too late. Before you read this article please bear in mind that no-one actually knows just how SSRIs work – the hypothesis of chemical imbalance has been exposed as a lie. However, what this new research does seem to point to is that Seroxat/Paxil acts in a different way to other SSRIs – perhaps this could explain why Seroxat/Paxil is so hard to stop taking? The most widely prescribed antidepressants — medicines such as Prozac, Lexapro and Paxil — work by blocking the serotonin transporter, a brain protein that normally clears away the mood-regulating chemical serotonin. Or so the current thinking goes. That theory about how sel... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4498369 Sat, 19 Feb 2011 12:31:11 +0100 4498369 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4495401&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35772&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshutah.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F19%2Fcrusaders-highly-deserved-recognition%2F Surely, one of the proudest moment’s in Bob Fiddaman’s quest for justice in the eternal fight against SSRI’s . As Bob writes in his blog “What could piss off GlaxoSmithKline more than Bob Fiddaman getting an award for basically highlighting their dark history?” Way to go Fiddy!!!!!! [Click the pic to read the full story] [...] (Source: SEROXAT WEBLOG) SEROXAT WEBLOG blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4495401 Sat, 19 Feb 2011 10:00:57 +0100 4495401 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4478139&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=34768&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmagossip.blogspot.com%2F2011%2F02%2Fmore-dave-brennan-he-likes-word-trust.html (Source: PharmaGossip) PharmaGossip blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4478139 Tue, 15 Feb 2011 15:14:00 +0100 4478139 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4419409&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35772&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshutah.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F31%2Fgsk-gives-in-last-minute-deal-in-avandia-suit%2F A federal court in Philadelphia was all set to hear a liability lawsuit against GlaxoSmithKline today, but an 11th-hour settlement took that case right off the docket. GSK made a deal with the family of Avandia patient James Burford to resolve claims that the diabetes drug caused his fatal heart attack. GSK recently took a $3.5 [...] (Source: SEROXAT WEBLOG) SEROXAT WEBLOG blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4419409 Mon, 31 Jan 2011 18:21:31 +0100 4419409 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4411698&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35772&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshutah.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F29%2Fpharmageddon-by-charles-medawar%2F Taken from http://www.socialaudit.org.uk Pharmageddon has been defined as, “the prospect of a world in which medicines and medicine produce more ill-health than health, and when medical progress does more harm than good”. We see the need to investigate and explore that risk and to identify the factors and features that describe it. Pharmageddon embraces the [...] (Source: SEROXAT WEBLOG) SEROXAT WEBLOG blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4411698 Sat, 29 Jan 2011 00:00:32 +0100 4411698 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4406013&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35772&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshutah.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F26%2Fready-get-set-go-deja-vu-strikes-again%2F Reps Hired for Viibyd Launch …….. Now that Clinical Data has an FDA approval in hand, it’s gearing up to grab a piece of the $12 billion antidepressant market. The company is hiring sales reps and rolling out a marketing campaign to support its new drug Viibryd, hailed as the first SSRI without troublesome sexual [...] (Source: SEROXAT WEBLOG) SEROXAT WEBLOG blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4406013 Wed, 26 Jan 2011 21:09:59 +0100 4406013 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4399798&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35772&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshutah.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F25%2Fglaxo-avandia-settlement-latest-news%2F Oh Dear!!  GSK in the spotlight a lot this week. Reports said Monday thatGlaxoSmithKline is bound to face a multi-district litigation amounting to an estimated $3.4 billion against its anti-diabetes drug, Avandia. According to the reports, a number of pending litigations against Avandia, an oral anti-diabetic agent which acts primarily by increasing insulin sensitivity, are filed in different states [...] (Source: SEROXAT WEBLOG) SEROXAT WEBLOG blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4399798 Tue, 25 Jan 2011 22:15:04 +0100 4399798 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4399799&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35772&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshutah.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F25%2Fgsk-pulls-ed-ads-to-help-rehab-its-image%2F Whoopy bloody dooooo!!!  Not before time that they [GSK] started to take some responsibility for their actions (inactions)!!!! GlaxoSmithKline is pulling ads for its erectile dysfunction drug Levitra. And it’s making a big show of that choice; North American President Deirdre Connelly said it’s part of the company’s new push to be more transparent and [...] (Source: SEROXAT WEBLOG) SEROXAT WEBLOG blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4399799 Tue, 25 Jan 2011 20:53:33 +0100 4399799 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4372241&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=34768&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmagossip.blogspot.com%2F2011%2F01%2Fpicture-is-worth-thousand-words-public.html This report is a "must read"! (Source: PharmaGossip) PharmaGossip blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4372241 Wed, 19 Jan 2011 09:27:00 +0100 4372241 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4361281&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35772&url=http%3A%2F%2Fshutah.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F18%2Flegal-no-go-area%2F Is this fair? The BBC has been told that Legal aid cuts will make it impossible to challenge pharmaceutical companies in the courts. The government plans to cut the legal aid budget by £350m which means lawyers representing claimants against drug companies will be unlikely to get funding in England and Wales. The current alternative is a mixture of no-win no-fee agreements with lawyers, and insurance against a patient losing and being liable for the winning side’s substantial costs. The government is currently consulting on its proposals and insists reforms will be fair. Listen to the programme and share your comments below. Thank you. Tagged: Big Pharma, GlaxoSmithKline, GSK, Litigation, Paxil, Seroxat (Source: SEROXAT WEBLOG) SEROXAT WEBLOG blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4361281 Tue, 18 Jan 2011 21:06:09 +0100 4361281 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4318332&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fbad-science-and-the-gift-of-medical-skepticism%2F2011.01.06 Discover magazine had an article about Dr. Ben Goldacre, a British physician who writes for The Guardian, is the author of the new book “Bad Science: Quacks, Hacks, and Big Pharma Flacks,” and is considered a gift to skepticism. His column is also called “Bad Science,” and he recently gave a short and interesting talk about non-evidence-based medicine at the Pop!Tech conference held in Camden, Maine. Enjoy! Ben Goldacre Talks Bad Science from PopTech on Vimeo. *This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll* (Source: Better Health) Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4318332 Thu, 06 Jan 2011 20:00:52 +0100 4318332 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4305087&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F03%2F60-minutes-and-glaxosmithklines-whistleblower%2F Yet another ‘how does Glaxo get away with it’ story…. Cheryl Eckards’ job, as manager of Glaxo’s global quality assurance, “was to inspect plants to make sure that the drugs had the right ingredients, the right potency and met government standards for purity.” In fact, she was sent in because an FDA inspection had already seen problems as this plant [Cidra] (noting that “FDA inspections of drug plants are only occasional, so it’s up to drug companies to police themselves” – which is why litigation is such a critical backup.)  But as 60 Minutes put it, Eckard “found much more than the FDA had.”  For example, The employees were contaminating products, including the anti-bacterial ointment Bactroban, which was made in a sealed tank to prevent co... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4305087 Mon, 03 Jan 2011 14:10:36 +0100 4305087 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4266190&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F12%2F18%2F20-years-of-pharmaceutical-company-fraud%2F How much longer will big pharma be allowed to get away with it? Something’s got to change, because along with all the settlements shown below, the pharmaceutical industry is responsible for killing thousands of patients each year. You’ll see from the chart that the last few years have been the worst for settlements – the reason is that the pharmaceutical companies that are all too happy to create drugs (and aggressively market those drugs) in the knowledge that the drugs are unsafe – putting their wealth before patients’ health. The age of the truly innovative blockbuster drug is over – Big Pharma knows this but continues to market sub standard products to the public. This is also the reason why we have seen marketing and advertising spend leap ahead of (by two ... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4266190 Sat, 18 Dec 2010 10:39:02 +0100 4266190 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4259154&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34844&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftheicarusproject.net%2Fhttp%253A%2F%25252Fwww.theicarusproject.net%2Fethan-watters-discussion-about-dsm-gone-global%2F read more (Source: The Icarus Project - Navigating the Space Between Brilliance and Madness) The Icarus Project - Navigating the Space Between Brilliance and Madness blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4259154 Tue, 14 Dec 2010 02:32:37 +0100 4259154 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4251253&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F12%2F11%2Fchuck-nemeroff-really-really-pissed-off-but-still-really-really-rich%2F Did I mention the textbook that Chuck Nemeroff wrote, oops – or rather he didn’t, but he might have done, or at least he might have seen some drafts and approved them… who knows? Probably not Chuck  because his memory is so bad – maybe that’s why he forgot to disclose all that cash he got from drug companies (wasn’t it about $1.5 million?). That’s one poor memory! Anyway, now he’s really pissed off and wants to sue POGO because they ran a story about the ghostwritten Nemeroff textbook – and so did the the New York Times in their story: Drug Maker Wrote Book Under 2 Doctors’ Names, Documents Say Here are some downloads for you while away the long winter hours with – thanks to 1 Boring Old Man POGO Letter to NIH on Ghostwritin... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4251253 Sat, 11 Dec 2010 15:53:29 +0100 4251253 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4241926&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F12%2F08%2Fwikileaks-big-pharma-revelations-next%2F In a rare, two-hour interview conducted in London on November 11, Julian Assange said that he’s still sitting on a trove of secret documents, about half of which relate to the private sector. And WikiLeaks’ next target will be a major American bank. “It will give a true and representative insight into how banks behave at the executive level in a way that will stimulate investigations and reforms, I presume,” he said, adding: “For this, there’s only one similar example. It’s like the Enron emails.” “You could call it the ecosystem of corruption. But it’s also all the regular decision making that turns a blind eye to and supports unethical practices: the oversight that’s not done, the priorities of executives, how they think they’re fulfilling their own self-inter... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4241926 Wed, 08 Dec 2010 14:34:39 +0100 4241926 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4230309&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F12%2F05%2F1-boring-old-man-chuck-nemeroff%2F A retired Doctor (the 1 Boring old Man) writes about Nemeroff and Ghostwriting: Like Dr. Healy, I have some personal reasons for being upset about all of this. In 1974, I changed careers from Internal Medicine to Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis because of an interest in the mind, and I never looked back. I was in academic medicine at Emory University after retraining. In the early 1980’s, a new Chairman arrived, and it was clear that my interests were not compatible with the wave of Biological Psychiatry that was sweeping the specialty, and I left for private practice, continuing to teach in the Psychoanalytic Institute, but no longer involved with the Psychiatry Department. At that time, I wasn’t bitter and enjoyed my private practice. A few years later, Dr. Nemeroff became Chairman. I ... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4230309 Sun, 05 Dec 2010 18:54:52 +0100 4230309 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4175693&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Funintended-consequences-of-cheaper-generic-drugs%2F2010.11.17 There’s an article in the New England Journal of Medicine entitled the “Unintended Consequences of Four-Dollar Generic Drugs.“ Ever one to hone in on unintended consequences of all stripes, I quickly clicked through. Oh, dear! What bad could possibly come of making drugs significantly more affordable? Were more people demanding prescriptions for drugs they didn’t really need now that they were so cheap? (Dream on. I’m still twisting arms to get my high-risk cardiac patients to take their generic statins.) Were pharmacies going out of business, no longer to make ends meet without massive markups on brand name drugs, contributing to skyrocketing unemployment and otherwise adding to the country’s general economic malaise? Were cardiologists’ incomes plummeting because of saggin... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4175693 Wed, 17 Nov 2010 21:00:35 +0100 4175693 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4172062&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fhrt-and-breast-cancer-deaths-%25e2%2580%2593-just-in-case-you-weren%25e2%2580%2599t-listening-the-first-time%25e2%2580%25a6%2F2010.11.16 A new analysis of long-term data from the Women’s Health Initiative confirms what we already knew the first time around: Use of combination hormone replacement (HRT*) is associated with a small, but real, risk of breast cancer. This new 11-year followup data carries that knowledge out to its not unexpected conclusion — namely, that some (although not most) breast cancers can be fatal, and therefore the the use of HRT can increase breast cancer mortality. While it may seem a bit of a “duh,” this study was, in fact, necessary to quell the WHI critics who continued to argue that the breast cancers caused by HRT were somehow less aggressive than those occurring off HRT (which they are not.) It was also a wake-up call for many women who were continuing to use HRT and thinking that s... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4172062 Tue, 16 Nov 2010 13:00:50 +0100 4172062 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4105666&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fis-looking-at-long-term-impossible-in-our-healthcare-system%2F2010.10.25 I spent last week in Gothenburg, Sweden covering the European Committee for the Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) meeting. Lots of good science, lots of excitement over the new oral and targeted therapies coming on the market to treat this awful disease. But what I want to write about isn’t the science, but about how it will play out in the brave new world of healthcare in which we all live in today. For instance, consider the first oral therapy to hit the market: Gilenya (fingolimod), which the FDA approved in September. Last month Novartis announced the price: $48,000 a year. This is not a rant against the high cost of drugs, however. It is a rant against the inability of our healthcare system to take the long view of the impact of such drugs, a view that is particularly im... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4105666 Mon, 25 Oct 2010 20:00:00 +0100 4105666 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4105667&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fa-secret-sign-of-aging-international-disease-mongering%2F2010.10.25 Just five days ago we wrote about an American journalist’s observations of medicalization of one problem sometimes observed after menopause: Vaginal atrophy. Today we see that this disease-mongering trend has popped up in Australia as well. This should be no surprise. Such campaigns are usually led by multinational pharmaceutical companies and their advertising and public relations agencies. What caught our eye was an article on a women’s health foundation website — a foundation that posts a pretty thin excuse for why it won’t tell you its source of funding. Its article on vaginal atrophy uses classic disease-mongering language: “Ask a woman over the age of 50 about the ‘signs of ag[e]ing’ and she’ll most likely lament about grey hairs, wrin... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4105667 Mon, 25 Oct 2010 18:00:43 +0100 4105667 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4082087&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fdollars-for-doctors-investigative-public-service-journalism%2F2010.10.19 An historic piece of journalism was published today. Six news organizations partnered on the “Dollars for Docs” project — ProPublica, NPR, PBS’s Nightly Business Report, the Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe and Consumer Reports. They examined $258 million in payments by seven drug companies in 2009 and 2010 to about 18,000 healthcare practitioners nationwide for speaking, consulting, and other tasks. This webpage can be your gateway to the project, with links to a database searchable by doctor’s name or by state, and links to the journalism partners’ efforts: Boston Globe “Prescription for Prestige” The Harvard brand, unrivaled in education, is also prized by the pharmaceutical industry as a powerful tool in promoting drugs. Its allure is evid... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4082087 Tue, 19 Oct 2010 20:00:21 +0100 4082087 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4065365&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Findustry-influence-is-an-infection-international-criticism-of-pfizer-funded-journalism-workshops%2F2010.10.13 Next week, the National Press Foundation offers an “all-expenses-paid, educational program on cancer issues” for journalists, with all expenses paid by Pfizer. I’ve written several times about my criticism of this approach. The National Press Foundation has offered to let me speak at next week’s event or at a subsequent all-expenses-paid program for journalists on Alzheimer’s disease also underwritten by Pfizer. I’m unable to attend either event because of prior commitments, but suggested to NPF that they ask Merrill Goozner to speak instead. He’s right in Washington, has written and lectured about conflicts of interest in healthcare, and was available. Goozner told me he has not been contacted. So, since I can’t attend and since critical voi... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4065365 Wed, 13 Oct 2010 20:00:15 +0100 4065365 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4031241&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fthe-simple-truth-about-cholesterol%2F2010.10.05 The New York Times recently ran a piece that wondered if doctors were treating patients with cholesterol-lowering medication unnecessarily because a web-based calculator over estimated a person’s risk. The program was proudly sponsored by the pharmaceutical roundtable and was available at the American Heart Association. The implication was obvious. Simple tool determines an individual’s risk for heart attack or death from heart attack. It over estimates risk. Patients treated unnecessarily. To be also clear, the program did underestimate risk as well. Unfortunately, the article missed an important point. While the simplified calculator may not be as accurate as the more complex algorithm used by the National Cholesterol Education Program, the truth is doctors are likely to... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4031241 Tue, 05 Oct 2010 12:00:00 +0100 4031241 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3998991&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fvideo-interview-roches-social-media-code-of-conduct%2F2010.09.23 Last month I reported about the Social Media Code of Conduct released by Roche and I also shared my opinion on the issue. Now Sabine Kostevc, Head of Corporate Internet and Social Media at F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, gave an interview to Silja Chouquet: *This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll* (Source: Better Health) Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3998991 Fri, 24 Sep 2010 01:00:45 +0100 3998991 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3965412&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fdo-drug-companies-pay-attention-to-herbal-medicine%2F2010.09.13 I’m only a monthly contributor here, but between being a Science Based Medicine (SBM) reader and having my own blogs, I often grow weary of the blind criticism that researchers and drug companies couldn’t care less about traditional folk medicines as drug products. My laboratory spends every single day working on natural product extracts in the search for compounds that may have selective effectiveness against cancer. So this is a bit of a sore spot for me. Two [recent] papers from Cancer Prevention Research on the potential anticancer effects of a diabetes drug (see Nathan Seppa’s story here) remind me to tell the story of a Middle Ages European herbal medicine used to treat polyuria that gave rise to one of the most widely prescribed drugs in the world, metformin (Glucophage ... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3965412 Mon, 13 Sep 2010 18:00:21 +0100 3965412 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3942792&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fdepression-in-preschoolers%2F2010.09.07 The New York Times Magazine recently featured an article on preschooler depression. Pamela Paul wrote: Diagnosis of any mental disorder at this young age is subject to debate. No one wants to pathologize a typical preschooler’s tantrums, mood swings and torrent of developmental stages. Grandparents are highly suspicious; parents often don’t want to know. “How many times have you heard, ‘They’ll grow out of it’ or ‘That’s just how he is’?” says Melissa Nishawala, a child psychiatrist at the New York University Child Study Center. And some in the field have reservations, too. Classifying preschool depression as a medical disorder carries a risk of disease-mongering. “Given the influence of Big Pharma, we have to be sure that every time a child’s ice cream falls off t... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3942792 Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:00:00 +0100 3942792 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3938497&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=34768&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmagossip.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F09%2Ftimes-gone-by.html Maybe - maybe not! (Source: PharmaGossip) PharmaGossip blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3938497 Mon, 06 Sep 2010 16:47:00 +0100 3938497 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3935799&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fgeneric-drugs-not-so-cheap%2F2010.09.05 I received the following e-mail from a patient (paraphrased): Dear Dr. Fisher, Thank you for trying to switch me from lisinopril to generic losartan (Cozaar) to help me with the irritating cough that has been nagging me since I was placed on lisinopril. I did not pick up my prescription, though. At nearly $200 for a three-month supply, I’ve decided to live with the cough, since the same amount of lisinopril costs me about $12. -Ms. Patient Interesting how the generic drug market for some drugs only marginally discounts prices. Since the companies that make generics did not have to absorb research and development costs, how do they justify the exorbitant prices? Simple: The middlemen still have to get theirs. -WesMusings of a cardiologist and cardiac electrophysiologist. *This... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3935799 Sun, 05 Sep 2010 16:00:00 +0100 3935799 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3929230&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fpatients-are-splitting-pills-to-cut-healthcare-costs%2F2010.09.02 Patients are pill-splitting more to trim back healthcare costs, according to a poll by Consumer Reports. In the past year, 39 percent took some action to cut costs. The poll of more than 1,100 people found that 45 percent of people take at least one prescription drug and average four. But 27 percent said they didn’t always comply with a prescription, and 38 percent of those younger than 65 without drug coverage didn’t fill prescriptions at all. Just over half of patients felt that doctors didn’t consider their ability to pay when prescribing a drug, while nearly half blamed drugmaker’s influence for physicians’ prescribing habits. (HealthLeaders Media) *This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist* (Source: Better Health) Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3929230 Fri, 03 Sep 2010 01:00:00 +0100 3929230 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3902898&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fus-pharmaceutical-sales-the-top-10-list%2F2010.08.25 The top moneymakers for the U.S. pharmaceutical industry might surprise you. These aren’t necessarily the most prescribed medications (although some of them are), but they’re the top products in terms of sales in 2009. The revenues were in billions: 1. Lipitor - used for high cholesterol: $7.5 billion 2. Nexium - a proton pump inhibitor for GERD: $6.3 billion 3. Plavix - a blood thinner: $5.6 billion 4. Advair Diskus - used for asthma and COPD: $4.7 billion (more…) *This blog post was originally published at EverythingHealth* (Source: Better Health) Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3902898 Wed, 25 Aug 2010 20:00:00 +0100 3902898 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3758077&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F07%2Fin_fact_i_am_alive.html I know it's been four months since I last posted--and I'd never planned on being away so long--but I am on my way to coming back to this site. It'll likely be next week before I am back up to speed as I am trying to work six months of 90-hour weeks (no, I'm not exaggerating) out of my body. Suffice to say that running an all-volunteer initiative campaign in signature gathering phase is very tough work. The short story is the I-1068 campaign faced just about every obstacle you could imagine and some I never would've guessed at until they happened and we came up short on signatures. The main impediment was the weather: It was a very wet May and June (June was at 200 percent of normal rainfall) this year and that makes it extremely difficult to turn out volunteers to collect signatures. The i... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3758077 Wed, 14 Jul 2010 23:00:00 +0100 3758077 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3729875&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Findustry-sponsored-medical-education-should-big-pharma-buy-doctors-lunch%2F2010.07.06 “Appetite for Instruction: Why Big Pharma should buy your doctor lunch sometimes” is the headline of an article on Slate.com that has upset many readers. I’m not terribly upset about it because it just seems too naive and misinformed to get upset about. The final line of the piece tells you all you need to know about the tone of the column: “Ousting commercial support is creating a huge chasm in medical education, leaving doctors not only hungry but also starved for knowledge.” A number of online comments were posted in reaction to the piece. (more…) *This blog post was originally published at Gary Schwitzer's HealthNewsReview Blog* (Source: Better Health) Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3729875 Tue, 06 Jul 2010 21:00:39 +0100 3729875 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3676662&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fmedication-safety-and-ambulance-chasing-lawyers%2F2010.06.18 I don’t know about the rest of you medical bloggers, but I’ve been getting emails from folks who run a website called DrugWatch.com asking for reciprocal links and promoting themselves as the go-to place for patients to get up-to-date information on medication safety. Tucked into the website is this promise: “We will never accept advertising from the pharmaceutical industry.” Right. Because the whole site is a front for a bunch of Orlando lawyers trying to sniff out potential clients for medication-related lawsuits against the pharmaceutical industry. (more…) *This blog post was originally published at The Blog that Ate Manhattan* (Source: Better Health) Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3676662 Sat, 19 Jun 2010 01:14:18 +0100 3676662 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3569803&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fa-transparent-healthcare-system-whats-more-clear%2F2010.05.17 Congressional democrats want more transparency in healthcare, believing it would further drive down the cost of care, reports Politico. Hoping to drive competition, some lawmakers are grumbling to force doctors to reveal business negotiations between them and drug and device makers. Opponents worry that manipulating economics would backfire. If everyone knows their competitor’s business, why bother negotiating lower prices? But transparency worked for Wisconsin’s hospitals, not in business dealings but in reporting outcomes, reports The Fiscal Times. By voluntarily revealing clinical outcomes on the Web, the Wisconsin Collaborative for Healthcare Quality was able to spur low-performing hospitals to improve, high-performing facilities to eliminate tests that didn’t improve... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3569803 Mon, 17 May 2010 14:00:00 +0100 3569803 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3538120&cid=t_99409_99_f&fid=34593&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2FAyaJ%2F%7E3%2FgDBwwrjAURw%2Fjohnson_johnson_gets_it_wrong.php Just because a company got it right once doesn't mean they'll get it right all the time. Back in the day, one of the great crisis management success stories was was Johnson & Johnson's handling of a case where someone intentionally introduced cynanide into on the shelf bottles of Tylenol in the fall of 1982 in the Chicago area. Seven people died. If you ever have trouble opening your over the counter or prescription drug bottles, you can thank the creep who did it -- whoever that is. No one was ever caught. Here's a concise summary of the 1982 poisonings, courtesy Wikipedia: Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post... (Source: Effect Measure) Effect Measure blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3538120 Thu, 06 May 2010 11:25:32 +0100 3538120 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3526861&cid=t_99409_129_f&fid=36038&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Ftrevis-life-with-multiple-sclerosis-ms%2Fwhen-ms-meets-social-media%2F One thing that can surely be said about the World Wide Web; it’s, well world-wide, 24/7. It is now, as I write this post, 5:30 a.m. local time and I’ve been up for nigh 2 hours already.  I was using the wonderful world of the Internet to link into a social media meeting in Switzerland (not travel accepted, no “secret” information exchanged, no harm, no foul);  I said my piece and relayed your comments and half an hour later – I’m ready to go back to sleep! The topic of social media has, obviously, been on my mind for some time now and your comments have helped, but have also left me wondering about the medium… Technically, Life With MS comments are “screened”, as we try to weed out spam and personal attacks.  “Un-screened” social media is something like Facebook;... Life with MS blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3526861 Mon, 03 May 2010 15:05:49 +0100 3526861 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3519582&cid=t_99409_129_f&fid=36038&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Ftrevis-life-with-multiple-sclerosis-ms%2Fyour-opinion-matters-to-pharma-and-to-me%2F Our earlier post about ethics has really stirred up a conversation!  I knew I could count on our multiple sclerosis community for thoughtful debate on this as a specific topic.  You always come through! If you hadn’t noticed in my comment to Jane D I have decided that I will not be attending the group mentioned. The broader question, really, is what we want from the pharmaceutical companies (other than the obvious).  We’ve had a bit of a conversation about this before and your comments were, again, thoughtful.  I’d like to open that up again. For your information (if not disclosure) I am going to Skype into part of their discussion to give my/our opinions.  This way, not only will I not be accepting travel, I’m actually going to have to look presentable for a video conference ... Life with MS blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3519582 Thu, 29 Apr 2010 18:32:59 +0100 3519582 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3499196&cid=t_99409_129_f&fid=36038&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.everydayhealth.com%2Fblog%2Ftrevis-life-with-multiple-sclerosis-ms%2Fethics-big-pharma-and-ms%2F When it comes to living a life with Multiple Sclerosis, the Life With MS Blog community has made mine much more bearable.  This blog, however, is not about me.  As I stated over 4 years ago, in our first posting, “It’s all about you!” So today, I’d like to bring up an important question.  I need to know what you want from this blogger; it’s a bit of an ethical dilemma for me. As our community has grown, so has our visibility to the greater MS world.  It is not simply patients and their loved ones who visit this blog.  More and more, I am approached by the members of the broader MS community; service organizations, other bloggers, care providers, medicos, pharmaceutical companies, etc… In the past, it has been pretty easy to stay above the fray, as it were. I simply used wh... Life with MS blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3499196 Fri, 23 Apr 2010 15:18:07 +0100 3499196 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3487345&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34844&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftheicarusproject.net%2Fbiopsychiatry-knot-future-visions Hey check out this article I just wrote and please tell me what you think! Mad Love, Sascha More and more, the acceptance of the idea that our dissatisfaction and disease is a result of “brain chemistry” is desensitizing us to the notion that our feelings and experiences might have their roots in social and political problems. 0 0 0 Fundamentally, if we are going to shift the current mental health paradigm we are going to need a movement that both has the political savvy to understand how to fight the system, and the tools to be able to take care of each other as the world gets even crazier.  read more (Source: The Icarus Project - Navigating the Space Between Brilliance and Madness) The Icarus Project - Navigating the Space Between Brilliance and Madness blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3487345 Sun, 18 Apr 2010 16:31:32 +0100 3487345 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3483094&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34844&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftheicarusproject.net%2Fbiopsychiatry-knot-future-visions  More and more, the acceptance of the idea that our dissatisfaction and disease is a result of “brain chemistry” is desensitizing us to the notion that our feelings and experiences might have their roots in social and political problems. 0 0 0 Fundamentally, if we are going to shift the current mental health paradigm we are going to need a movement that both has the political savvy to understand how to fight the system, and the tools to be able to take care of each other as the world gets even crazier. read more (Source: The Icarus Project - Navigating the Space Between Brilliance and Madness) The Icarus Project - Navigating the Space Between Brilliance and Madness blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3483094 Sun, 18 Apr 2010 16:31:32 +0100 3483094 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3475846&cid=t_99409_99_f&fid=34593&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2FAyaJ%2F%7E3%2FPYSY7TAM8WI%2Ftoo_big_to_nail.php This was in the news a couple of weeks ago, but I held on to it so I could remind people of it again, the "too big to nail" syndrome": Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post... (Source: Effect Measure) Effect Measure blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3475846 Fri, 16 Apr 2010 11:57:30 +0100 3475846 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3408613&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34849&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPWBlogs-Trouble%2F%7E3%2FbJnhqrbnpik%2F In the recovery movement, which is the zeitgeist in the delivery of mental health services at this time, we are supposed to look past someone’s diagnosis. I am not “a bipolar” or “depressive” or “schizophrenic.” I have been diagnosed with such, but the relevance of that diagnosis is highly suspect. Because aren’t I just Liz? Liz who is addicted to Dunkin Donuts hazelnut coffee, Liz who likes chihuahuas in sweaters, Liz who tries to do gluteal exercises to increase her butt’s circumference — without success. So many things make up my Liz-ness, right? So who cares what some doctor said? Generally speaking, I agree with this approach. For many years we have been labelling people in an attempt to treat them, and the results aren&#8217... The Trouble With Spikol blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3408613 Fri, 26 Mar 2010 14:50:58 +0100 3408613 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3399178&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FJEIR7u6p3BA%2Fpfizer-does-large-scale-social-media.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3399178 Tue, 23 Mar 2010 18:04:00 +0100 3399178 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3395370&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FJic09r7RDqE%2Fwhat-content-is-pharma-responsible-for.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3395370 Mon, 22 Mar 2010 18:14:00 +0100 3395370 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3366216&cid=t_99409_99_f&fid=34593&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2FAyaJ%2F%7E3%2FIsWlN07Copw%2Fthe_headline_you_didnt_see_roc.php I've had occasion to remark a number of times how much of what is reported as "science news" is just warmed over press releases from university media departments or company flacks. I read them anyway, often sucked in my a headline that turns out to oversell the case. Now I'm becoming aware headlines can also (deliberately) undersell the case. Consider two press releases that came out on virtually the same day, one from Big Pharma Pfizer, the other from biotech player, Genentech, owned by Big Pharma's Roche (maker of Tamiflu). Pfizer, first. Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post... (Source: Effect Measure) Effect Measure blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3366216 Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:14:31 +0100 3366216 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3354257&cid=t_99409_87_f&fid=34595&url=http%3A%2F%2Fnhsblogdoc.blogspot.com%2F2010%2F03%2Fhealth-police-are-back-cholesterol.html Yet another mendacious headline from the biased BBC, this time slagging off GPs for "failing to give correct cholesterol targets".  It's the usual nonsense that results when medically untrained journalists misunderstand a bit of research, and want a cheap headline. And it does not come cheaper than the daily knee-jerk knocking of GPs in which a certain sort of journalist revels.Few journalists are medically trained and so, when they come across a health problem, they have to research it. Because they did not about it before, they automatically assume that that the main cause of the problem is that British family doctors did not know about it either. Medical journalists do not expect GPs to know about anything, because they think that the 40,000 + GPs in the UK are all incompetent. Hos... NHS Blog Doctor blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3354257 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:15:00 +0100 3354257 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3273059&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2162 LGBT ally Rep Diane Watson will not run for re-election by Karen Ocamb February 11, 2010 Longtime LGBT ally Congressmember Diane E. Watson (D-CA) formally announced Thursday that she is not seeking re-election. She wants Karen Bass, the outgoing Speaker of the California Assembly and another pro-LGBT ally, to replace her representing California’s 33rd Congressional District. Watson’s openly gay legislative deputy Charles Stewart describes below how his boss told her staff she was retiring. But first something about Watson. I first met Diane Watson in the early 1990s at AIDS activist Phill Wilson’s house for a meet and greet with the California State Senator, where she’d been serving since 1978. First thing that struck me was how tall she was – statuesque and elegant and smart. Tu... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3273059 Mon, 15 Feb 2010 15:26:33 +0100 3273059 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3262837&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2148 Researchers find ‘broad spectrum’ antiviral that fights multitude of viruses By Enrique Rivero February 01, 2010 Compound could be used against HIV-1, Nipah, Ebola and other deadly viruses Viruses are insidious creatures. They differ from each other in many ways, and they can mutate — at times seemingly at will, as with HIV — to resist a host of weapons fired at them. Complicating matters further is that new viruses are constantly emerging. One potential weapon is a small-molecule “broad spectrum” antiviral that will fight a host of viruses by attacking them through some feature common to an entire class of viruses. For example, there are two categories of viruses: lipid-enveloped and non-enveloped. Enveloped viruses are surrounded by a membrane that in effect ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3262837 Thu, 11 Feb 2010 01:05:14 +0100 3262837 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3262838&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2145 Scientists say [they've] crack[ed] HIV/AIDS puzzle for drugs By Kate Kelland January 31, 2010 Study solves puzzle that eluded scientists for 20 years * Finding should help development of new HIV/AIDS medicines * Allows scientists to see how Merck and Gilead drugs work LONDON, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Scientists say they have solved a crucial puzzle about the AIDS virus after 20 years of research and that their findings could lead to better treatments for HIV. British and U.S. researchers said they had grown a crystal that enabled them to see the structure of an enzyme called integrase, which is found in retroviruses like HIV and is a target for some of the newest HIV medicines. “Despite initially painstakingly slow progress and very many failed attempts, we did not give up and our effort w... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3262838 Thu, 11 Feb 2010 00:10:53 +0100 3262838 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3259184&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.latalkradio.com%2Fimages%2FTerry-013110.mp3 Terry LeGrand’s The Alternative Internet Radio Channel 1Sunday nights 6:00-7:00 http://www.latalkradio.com/ chers— click below to listen or download the audiofile namaste —rk Broadcast date: Sunday, January 31, 2010 Guests Richard Kearns, a poet, journalist, activist, organizer for the LA Grassroots Elder HIV/AIDS Advocacy Summit, and long time AIDS survivor, and Elliott Katz discussed LA Grassroots Elder HIV/AIDS Advocacy Summit along with a special visit from LATalkRadio’s Greg Rempe discussing BBQ. Please click this sentence to Play audio recording of show Please click this sentence to Download audio recording of show Terry Le Grand transfers his show “The Alternative” from KTLK 1170 Los Angeles to LATALK Radio. Terry Le Grand, has been a GAY activist fo... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3259184 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:59:28 +0100 3259184 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3259262&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2F1Oq_auNP_-c%2Fepharma-summit-2010-interview-straight.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3259262 Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:53:00 +0100 3259262 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3208690&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FxoaJBTSCs2k%2Fny-governor-patterson-pushes-for-pharma.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3208690 Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:54:00 +0100 3208690 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3172205&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FozrjAMKOYxQ%2Fpfizer-offers-no-strings-attached-grant.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3172205 Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:32:00 +0100 3172205 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3167450&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FozrjAMKOYxQ%2Fpfizer-offers-no-strings-attached-grant.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3167450 Wed, 13 Jan 2010 16:32:00 +0100 3167450 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3167431&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F01%2Ffda_warns_lilly_over_false_misleading_cymbalta_ads.html The FDA has issued a warning to Eli Lilly concerning print ads for its anti-depressant Cymbalta. I've not been able to find the letter but have seen multiple press accounts. Here's what the FDA apparently said. "'The print ad is false or misleading in that it presents efficacy claims for Cymbalta, but fails to adequately communicate the risks associated with its use,' the FDA said. 'The Blue Book Message is false or misleading because it overstates the efficacy of Cymbalta and minimizes the risks associated with the drug.'" Risks associated with an anti-depressant? A pharma company downplaying risks? I've never heard of such a thing! (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3167431 Tue, 12 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0100 3167431 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3146190&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2010%2F01%2Feffexor_has_87_percent_profit_margin.html A very interesting bit from a very smart financial analyst who went and somehow figured out which drugs had the largest pre-tax profit margins. Topping the list was Effexor with an 87 percent pre-tax profit margin. Even more astonishing is that more than half of the drugs the analyst looked at had pre-tax margins of 70 percent or greater. Here's the list via Pharmalot: 1 - Effexor (Pfizer) 87 percent 2 - Arimidex (AstraZeneca) 85 percent 3 - Femara (Novartis) 84 percent 4 - Detrol (Pfizer) 84 percent 5 - Gemzar (Lilly) 84 percent 6 - Xeloda (Roche) 82 percent 7 - Lipitor (Pfizer) 82 percent 8 - Zometa (Novartis) 81 percent 9 - Plavix (Bristol-Myers/Sanofi-Aventis) 81 percent* 10 - Taxotere (Sanofi-Aventis) 80 percent * - for the total brand, ignoring profit splits (Source: Furious Seaso... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3146190 Tue, 05 Jan 2010 00:00:00 +0100 3146190 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3092934&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2F33SKyv-Ksp4%2Fsenate-rejects-dorgans-plan-to-import.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3092934 Wed, 16 Dec 2009 16:07:00 +0100 3092934 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3092910&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Fglaxo_releases_list_of_payments_to_doctors.html GlaxoSmithKline has become the latest pharma company to go transparent with its payments to doctors and others to shill for its products. The company has released a 121 page document detailing such payments to US health care professionals in the second quarter of 2009. I've skimmed the list for some of the usual suspects, but didn't see any. Someone will inevitably find something tasty in this list, however. (Via Pharmalot.) (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3092910 Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3092910 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3089531&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Fwebmd_depression_screening_test_brought_to_you_by_eli_lilly.html Some of you have likely seen a depression screening ad that WebMD is running on TV. Designed to push you to the website, it features a woman complaining of being left by her husband one year before and how she can't cope and a voiceover declares that WebMD's depression screening test is just the place. When you head on over to said test, you find that it's "brought to you by Lilly" and there's the Lilly logo in the top right corner. Lilly of course makes Prozac and Cymbalta (and Zyprexa and Strattera). Well at least they are being honest, but at some point I think we all get more than a little tired of seeing these kinds of hand-in-glove relationships. Not that WebMD is a paragon of journalistic independence. Back in the early years of this decade, I was a reporter in Portland, Ore., wher... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3089531 Tue, 15 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3089531 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3089533&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Ftake_the_nami_survey_on_pharma_influence.html A reader passed along to me a link to an online survey being conducted on behalf of NAMI National. It's testing public sentiment on the group's funding by pharma companies and gives respondents room to provide commentary as well. It took me about 10 minutes, so if you've got 10 minutes to spare, go give NAMI a piece of your mind. The survey is anonymous. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3089533 Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3089533 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3084963&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Freport_glaxo_paid_out_1_billion_to_settle_paxil_lawsuits.html Doing some good old-fashioned reporting and document sleuthing, reporters at Bloomberg have totaled up all the payouts and settlements made by GlaxoSmithKline over the years involving Paxil and they find the total to be $1 billion. That's a stunning amount--Lilly's total legal payouts for Prozac are rumored to be about $50 million--and one GSK has kept quiet for a long time. It should be a huge red flag to doctors who continue to prescribe this drug as if there are no risks attached to its use and to patients who willingly take the drug. It would also make Paxil the anti-depressant whose maker has been forced to make the largest legal payouts to settle claims, as far as I know. The Paxil lawsuits have fallen into three areas: suicide, birth defects and withdrawal. Yes, there's something e... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3084963 Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3084963 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3079548&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Fdsm5_release_delayed_one_year.html The American Psychiatric Association yesterday announced that it has delayed the release of the forthcoming DSM-5 to May 2013, one year later than its previously scheduled release of 2012. In a press release the APA stated: "'Extending the timeline will allow more time for public review, field trials and revisions,' said APA President Alan Schatzberg, M.D. 'The APA is committed to developing a manual that is based on the best science available and useful to clinicians and researchers.'" The APA also said that the delay would allow the DSM-5 to dovetail better with ICD-10-CM codes, developed by the World Health Organization, which will be adopted by Medicare/Medicaid in late 2013. While I don't want to read too much into this delay, it's clear that the DSM-5 process has become a real pol... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3079548 Fri, 11 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3079548 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3079550&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Flilly_stock_going_down.html For those of you interested in the stock markets, one of the big stories out there today was that Lilly's stock dropped about 3 percent today--a sizable move for a fairly stable stock. Reportedly, Lilly CEO John Lechleiter gave a speech before analysts in New York and offered little hope for how the company will fare financially in 2011 and beyond as Zyprexa and, then, Cymbalta come off-patent. What no one has picked up on in the financial press so far is that Lechleiter also isn't saying a thing about Lilly's experimental compound, LY2140023, which failed a major clinical trial earlier this year. The company does have an ongoing safety study of the compound, so they are pushing ahead, but it's likely Lilly's revenues will take a huge hit in 2011. Unless the company has some trick up its ... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3079550 Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3079550 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3071448&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Fsen_grassley_goes_after_dozens_of_medical_advocacy_groups.html Earlier this year, Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) demanded that the National Alliance on Mental Illness reveal details of its funding by pharma companies. Now, the senator has gone many steps further and has demanded similar disclosures from 32 medical advocacy groups and, drum roll, TeenScreen. Among the groups are DBSA, Mental Health America, Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Screening for Mental Health Inc. I congratulate Sen. Grassley and his staffer Paul Thacker for continuing to go after this issue. If I can note this without sounding too self-congratulatory, it was yours truly who suggested to Thacker, after the blast of news around NAMI, that the senator also put similar requests to DBSA, MHA and CHADD. Not that that Thacker couldn't have figure... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3071448 Wed, 09 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3071448 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3067286&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Fpristiq_soon_to_be_for_menopausal_women.html I caught an item on a stock market website yesterday that seemed worth passing along. "Wyeth is also conducting a late-stage trial evaluating Pristiq for the non-hormonal treatment of vasomotor symptoms associated with menopause. The FDA, which issued an approvable letter for Pristiq in July 2007, has sought additional data regarding the potential for serious adverse cardiovascular and hepatic effects associated with the use of Pristiq for the treatment of menopausal symptoms. The requested clinical trial that is underway is expected to be completed in the first half of 2010." Indeed, there are several trials for such purposes registered online. Pfizer's not finding much of a market for Pristiq as an anti-depressant I guess. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3067286 Tue, 08 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3067286 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3056866&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F12%2F04%2Fdrug-industry-spends-at-least-20-5-billion-a-year-on%2F …research and development? You must be joking, it’s on marketing – and this is just in the USA! Of course the way some drug trials are rigged and the data ‘interpreted’ then many would argue that these costs should be included in the marketing spend as well. This from the Wall Street Journal: Despite all the job cuts for drug reps, despite the endless stream of TV drug ads, the pharma industry still spends most of its U.S. marketing money the old-fashioned way: Paying salespeople to call on doctors and other health-care providers. Drug companies spent “at least $20.5 billion in marketing” in 2008, the  CBO said in a research brief published yesterday. (That figure doesn’t include the value of free drug samples companies give to docs, by the way.) The b... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3056866 Fri, 04 Dec 2009 13:50:29 +0100 3056866 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3056859&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Ffda_issues_major_birth_defects_warning_for_depakote.html Depakote, Abbott's widely-used anti-convulsant for epilepsy and bipolar disorder, today was the object of a major FDA warning. "The FDA notified health care professionals and patients about the increased risk of neural tube defects and other major birth defects, such as craniofacial defects and cardiovascular malformations, in babies exposed to valproate sodium and related products (valproic acid and divalproex sodium) during pregnancy. Healthcare practitioners should inform women of childbearing potential about these risks, and consider alternative therapies, especially if using valproate to treat migraines or other conditions not usually considered life-threatening. "Women of childbearing potential should only use valproate if it is essential to manage their medical condition. Those wh... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3056859 Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3056859 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3056858&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Fseveral_items_worth_noting.html AstraZeneca has inked a deal with Targacept for its anti-depressant compoud known as TC-5214. It's a neuronal nicotinic receptor modulator. The wonderful Dr. Bonkers has gone and translated a disgusting Swedish pharma brochure telling kids who to swallow their ADHD meds the "coool" way. Big Pharma spends $20.5 billion a year marketing its drugs. The Wall Street Journal breaks down the numbers. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3056858 Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3056858 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3052370&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F12%2Flilly_wins_partial_zyprexa_court_victory.html In a fairly surprising setback, US District Court Judge Jack Weinstein yesterday granted summary judgement--or dismissed--a major portion of the State of Mississippi's lawsuit against Eli Lilly. That would be the part of the suit contending that the company was negligent in marketing Zyprexa. The ruling lets stand the portion of the state's case claiming the company bilked the state's Medicaid system. I'd expect the state to appeal the judge's ruling, one of Lilly's first substantive victories in more than four years of settling various Zyprexa cases for about $2.8 billion. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3052370 Wed, 02 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3052370 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3012609&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F11%2Fbritish_national_health_service_goes_after_american_website.html A few of you likely know of Dr. Bonkers, the Bonkers Institute and its website. Bonkers--aka Ben Hansen--has tirelessly catalogued pharma ads for psych meds for four years and recently posted some National Health Service brochures he obtained that are alarming. In them, children, teens and young adults are basically told to shut up and take their meds--Zyprexa, Risperdal and Strattera (links are to the brochures). In making them publicly available, Hansen has apparently angered the NHS which contact him and asked him to edit out much of the brochure from his website. Hansen refused (see the exchange below). Some of the language in the brochures is interesting. I'll focus on the Zyprexa brochure. "Your Medicine is called Olanzapine. Pronounced 'o-lan-za-peen.' "Many children, teenagers a... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3012609 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3012609 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3012611&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F11%2Facademic_researchers_fail_to_report_conflicts.html An article today in the New York Times simply blows my mind. I'll just quote from it: "Few universities make required reports to the government about the financial conflicts of their researchers, and even when such conflicts are reported, university administrators rarely require those researchers to eliminate or reduce these conflicts, government investigators found. "In a report expected to be made public on Thursday, Daniel R. Levinson, the inspector general of the Department of Health and Human Services, said 90 percent of universities relied solely on the researchers themselves to decide whether the money they made in consulting and other relationships with drug and device makers was relevant to their government-financed research. "And half of universities do not ask their faculty m... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3012611 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100 3012611 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3004043&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2041 boxer We are honored to have Senator Barbara Boxer share with Courage Campaign members her commitment to strip the horrific Stupak Amendment from any healthcare reform bill and pass true health care reform. Her message is powerful. We need to show her — and the nation — that thousands and thousands of us stand with her by signing the petition. –Rick Jacobs, Chair, Courage Campaign Dear Friend, Ten days ago, the House passed the Stupak Amendment, which would be one of the biggest setbacks to women’s health in recent decades - unless we stand together and stop it. That’s why we are launching a petition at FightForWomensHealth.com, because women must not be denied access to safe and legal medical procedures. Will you join us? Click here to stand with us t... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3004043 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:49:37 +0100 3004043 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2999834&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F11%2Fbig_pharmas_sneaky_trick.html An excellent piece in today's New York Times lays out how Big Pharma has been promising to cut costs of its drugs (to the tune of $8 billion a year) to help make health care reform happen while at the same time it's going around raising the prices of its drugs to the tune of $9 billion a year. That's such typical behavior by the drug companies that I'm hardly surprised. They are a truly brazen bunch. You just had to know that with Big Pharma openly supporting health care reform and alleged cost-cutting that something funny had to be going on. Now, we know what it was. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2999834 Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100 2999834 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2989356&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2015 [tuesday, November 3, 2009] good morning president garcetti, distinguished council members. i have given the clerk copies of my prepared remarks. my name is richard kearns. i am a 58-year-old gay man with AIDS, a long-term survivor & activist, a medical cannabis advocate, a poet & journalist. i am here this morning to suggest a plan B for medical cannabis in LA please empower a special high-speed ad hoc medical cannabis team, who, starting with the text of the city’s legislative analyst submitted to the plum committee september 25th can finish translating the whereases to section numbers inside a month (sort of like going from iambic pentameter to dactylic hexameter) & not to “correct” them, but to produce a good faith medical cannabis ordinance, one that spells out fees... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2989356 Fri, 13 Nov 2009 01:49:10 +0100 2989356 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2989358&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D2007 chers— this is my favorite essay on the term “namasté,” which belongs in the mix before we go too much further along. i make no claims about divinity here, because nothing can really be verifiably known about divinity. but we all share & perceive & express greatnesses whose roots reach into an inner invisible realm of spirit. namasté —rk . . . while we are singing the praises of namasté, it should be observed how efficient a gesture it is in an age of mass communication. A politician, or performer can greet fifty thousand people with a single namasté, and they can return the honor instantly. In such a situation a handshake is unthinkable . . . “Shake hands and come out fighting.” It’s the referee’s final counsel to two pugilists ... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2989358 Thu, 12 Nov 2009 22:17:18 +0100 2989358 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2981340&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F11%2Fill_just_do_a_round_up.html I'm in no mood to write today. My headache is gone, but I got yet another reject email from yet another media organization I'd applied to and I am simply not in the mood to put too many sentences together. The NY Times has an op-ed today arguing against lumping together Asperger's syndrome and autism in the forthcoming DSM-5. It's interesting that the paper would choose to highlight that issue since it's been fairly quiet on developments around the new DSM. I wonder why. The Chicago Tribune and ProPublica have a piece out on a Chicago psychiatrist who was prescribing tons of Clozaril to his patients (almost unheard of these days) as well as Seroquel. I was a source for the ProPublica reporter on this series (part two runs tomorrow and is allegedly "eye popping") and it's deeply ironic t... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2981340 Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100 2981340 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2974158&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1987 ViiV vows joint venture will help fight HIV By Andrew Jack November 3 2009 The new head of the pioneering HIV joint venture between GlaxoSmithKline andPfizer predicts his company can operate for at least five years without fresh funding from its shareholders. Dominique Limet, chief executive of ViiV Healthcare, which was formally launched on Tuesday, says it will generate £1.6bn a year in sales to finance its own research and would begin paying a dividend to its two owners in 2011 as it sells new products. A woman infected with HIV prepares her medicines in Indonesia. She could be one of thousands who would benefit from more effective treatments EDITOR’S CHOICE Novartis to expand Chinese research labs - Nov-03 French crackdown on parallel drugs trade - Nov-02 Interactive grap... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2974158 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:10:49 +0100 2974158 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2974159&cid=t_99409_135_f&fid=35246&url=http%3A%2F%2Faids-write.org%2F%3Fp%3D1984 Larger Merck says merger will actually increase R&D efficiency pharmatimes.com 05 November 2009 The new Merck & Co has opened its doors for business, and the company has been laying out its plans for future growth now that Schering-Plough has been added to the group. Chief executive Richard Clark says that “our integration teams prepared us well for a strong start…with thorough plans designed to ensure a seamless transition”. The new entity now has more than 15 late-stage candidates “spanning critical therapeutic categories” and has 106,000 employees in more than 140 countries. That figure is expected to be reduced by 15%, or some 15,000 jobs, as Merck has set itself a target of cost savings of $3.5 billion annually beyond 2011, “which are expected to co... aids-write.org blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2974159 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:11:25 +0100 2974159 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2970399&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F11%2Ffeds_investigating_abbott_over_depakote_marketing.html News is out that the federal Department of Justice is investigating Abbott Labs over questions about its marketing of Depakote, its anti-seizure drug that's also approved for bipolar disorder. It's not clear what the scope of the investigation is, so stay tuned. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2970399 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100 2970399 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2959062&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F11%2Fpsychiatrist_explains_his_lilly_consulting.html Manoj Waikar, an adjunct psychiatry professor at Stanford who's also in private practice in Palo Alto, Calif., has made $74,850 for speaking on Lilly's behalf 51 times this year. So the New York Times smartly tried to find out what made him so sought after by Lilly and what services he provided. What fun that new Lilly database of its outside consultants has become. "In response to queries from a reporter, Dr. Waikar wrote in an e-mail message that he received fees for speaking to other health care professionals about disorders like schizophrenia and depression, which can be treated with the Lilly drugs Zyprexa and Cymbalta respectively.... "In an e-mail message to a reporter, Dr. Waikar wrote that although drug company presentations were standardized to comply with drug marketing regula... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2959062 Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0100 2959062 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2944101&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FZ0VlZWYUzqQ%2Fagencies-partner-to-launch-social-media.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2944101 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:23:00 +0100 2944101 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2947113&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fnami_lies_in_nyt_letter_to_the_editor.html Today, NAMI National's executive director Michael Fitzpatrick penned a letter to the editor of the New York Times and objected to how NAMI had been portrayed in a recent article which outlined how the group had gotten about $23 million in pharma funding in recent years. The paper had claimed that represented two-thirds of NAMI's budget and Fitzpatrick wrote to claim it only represented 50 percent. Then he dropped this claim into the letter: "NAMI maintains strict guidelines that govern all corporate relations and does not endorse or promote any specific medication, treatment, service or product." That's a bald-faced lie. In December 2006, Fitzpatrick was quoted in a Janssen/J&J press release wherein he openly touted the company's new atypical antipsychotic Invega: "'We are pleased that... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2947113 Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100 2947113 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2939532&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fcongress_to_go_after_medicaid_fraud_why_not_fraud_against_patients_too.html The Wall Street Journal noted yesterday that Congress is planning to take steps to wipe out the estimated $60 billion a year in Medicaid fraud. "'The scale of health care fraud in America today is staggering,' Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D., Vt.) said at a hearing. 'Now, as health care reform moves through the Senate, I want to make sure we do all we can to tackle the fraud that could undermine efforts to reduce the skyrocketing cost of health care.'" That's all well and good and I wish Congress luck. A good amount of the fraudulent behavior comes from our friends at America's Pharmaceutical Research Companies (see Lilly, Pfizer, BMS, etc.). All of the billions in awards the feds have gotten out of these companies for ripping off taxpayers has also come at the expe... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2939532 Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0100 2939532 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2931217&cid=t_99409_134_f&fid=34841&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.diabetesmine.com%2F2009%2F10%2Ftalking-to-pharma-online-and-offline.html There are so many great events around empowered patients and consumer-driven healthcare in the Fall. It also being soccer season, the kickoff of the school year, and time for nearly every existing Jewish holiday, I can’t possibly attend as many as I’d like to.  This makes me especially thankful to have some good D-blogger [...] (Source: Diabetes Mine) Diabetes Mine blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2931217 Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:56:24 +0100 2931217 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2920472&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fnami_got_23_million_from_pharma_companies.html The New York Times is out today with an article on just how much money NAMI has been getting from Big Pharma in recent years--a ton, three-fourths of its total fundraising. "The mental health alliance, which is hugely influential in many state capitols, has refused for years to disclose specifics of its fund-raising, saying the details were private. "But according to investigators in Mr. Grassley’s office and documents obtained by The New York Times, drug makers from 2006 to 2008 contributed nearly $23 million to the alliance, about three-quarters of its donations. "Even the group’s executive director, Michael Fitzpatrick, said in an interview that the drug companies’ donations were excessive and that things would change. "'For at least the years of ’07, ’08 and ’09, the pe... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2920472 Wed, 21 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2920472 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2916422&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Flexapro_sales_stabilized_by_lexapro_sales_to_teens.html In a conference call with analysts on Tuesday, Forest Labs' COO Larry Olanoff noted slightly decreased Lexapro sales and credited the drug's recent FDA approval for use in adolescents as helping to stabilize Lexapro's sales. "Lexapro sales in the quarter totaled $566 million, a decline of 3.1% year-over-year. In March, we announced the FDA approval of our supplemental NDA for Lexapro, for the indication of acute and maintenance treatment of major depressive disorder in adolescence, 12 to 17 years of age. This additional indication is helping to stabilize the position of Lexapro in the market, and we have observed an increase in share for this patient population." I've got no guess as to how many kids are on Lexapro, but it's well-known that the company has been charged by the feds with i... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2916422 Wed, 21 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2916422 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2916423&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fcymbalta_sales_way_up.html Eli Lilly announced its third quarter results today. Cymbalta sales are way up: "Lilly's biggest drug, Zyprexa, posted sales of $1.2 billion, up 2.8%. Higher selling prices offset lower demand in the U.S. Demand increased outside the U.S. Sales of antidepressant Cymbalta rose 10% to $790 million." A 10 percent increase over the same quarter last year is pretty significant. While I'm not clear on whether Lilly upped Cymbalta prices in the last year (which would account for a portion of the revenue increase if they had), it looks as though more scrips for this tricky anti-depressant are being written. Whether they are for depression or for pain indications isn't clear to me at all. It looks like Cymbalta could top $3 billion in sales this year. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2916423 Tue, 20 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2916423 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2908871&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fastrazeneca_offers_buyouts_to_entire_sales_force.html I don't often comment on the ebb and flow of pharma corporate news, but via Pharmalot comes news that AstraZeneca is asking its entire US sales force--some 5,000 to 6,000 people--to "self identify" whether or not they want to accept a buyout from the pharma giant. Don't think that AZ is getting out of the drug business, but like a lot of pharma companies it faces several products going off-patent over the next few years (Seroquel, Crestor, etc.), so it's cutting costs where it can. Quite a few pharma companies (lilly, BMS, AZ) are facing a serious "pipeline problem" of not having new drugs forthcoming to market to the public. As a longtime critic of Big Pharma, I find it rather odd that there have been no new product introductions of "breakthrough" drugs in recent years after decades of s... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2908871 Sun, 18 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2908871 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2905091&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fglaxo_negligent_not_outrageous.html An article in yesterday's Philadelphia Inquirer is the first mainstream media piece to try and grapple with the implications of last week's court award of $2.5 million to the family of Lyam Kilker. His mother took Paxil while she was pregnant with him and he was born with several heart defects. The jury verdict was in some ways mixed. "Jurors linked Lyam's problems to Paxil and said Glaxo had been negligent in not properly warning David's doctor of the drug's risk, but they did not find the London company's behavior outrageous, which would have been necessary to award punitive damages.... "Kline said last week's jury verdict was a strong win because birth defects were fairly common whether or not a pregnant woman takes a drug. That can make it hard to convince a jury that a product cause... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2905091 Sun, 18 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2905091 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2901822&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fcourt_rules_astrazeneca_overcharged_ky_medicaid_program.html AstraZeneca yesterday was found liable by a Kentucky court of ripping off that state's Medicaid program. "AstraZeneca, maker of popular drugs such as Crestor, Nexium and Seroquel, must reimburse Kentucky $14.72 million after overcharging its Medicaid program between November 1999 and March 2005. "AstraZeneca lied when reporting its average wholesale price on a number of drugs, said George Galland, representing Kentucky in the civil fraud trial that ended Thursday. "AstraZeneca inflated its prices between 20 and 30 percent depending on the drug, Galland told the jury in his summation. "The average wholesale price is calculated by adding a percentage to the price wholesalers pay for the drug. The percentage, usually between 1 and 3 percent, represents a profit that the wholesalers get a... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2901822 Thu, 15 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2901822 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2899177&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fmore_paxil_birth_defects_case_documents_available.html Bob Fiddaman of Seroxat (Paxil) Sufferers had done a fine job of getting his hands on various transcripts and depositions from the recently-completed Paxil birth defects case in Pennsylvania. He's now got up the deposition of Jane Nieman, a former GlaxoSmithKline employee. Go to his site to download the document. Although there have been a few smallish articles in the US press, news of the $2.5 million jury award sure hasn't shown up in the New York Times, Washington Post or LA Times. That's kind of weird, especially in light of the fact that GSK faces about another 600 birth defects lawsuits and also because it's very uncommon for a pharma company to lose a case involving an anti-depressant. GSK has announced that it will appeal the verdict. I look forward to seeing what legal argument... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2899177 Thu, 15 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2899177 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2890913&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fglaxo_must_pay_25_million_in_paxil_birth_defects_case.html A Pennsylvania jury earlier today found GlaxoSmithKline liable for heart defects caused to a young boy whose mother was taking the company's anti-depressant Paxil while pregnant. The jury awarded the boy's family $2.5 million. Plaintiff's attorneys had argued that Paxil had caused the defects and had failed to properly test the drug and, while knowing of its ability to cause defects, had failed to warn consumers properly. This is a significant ruling because it's the first time GSK has been found liable in a birth defects case and because there are abut 600 more similar cases awaiting trial. GSK's lawyers said they would appeal the verdict. The company issued a statement: "'While we sympathize with Lyam Kilker and his family, the scientific evidence does not establish that exposure to P... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2890913 Mon, 12 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2890913 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2876362&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FASXF3_LWyUU%2Fpharma-drops-search-advertising-after.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2876362 Thu, 08 Oct 2009 13:59:00 +0100 2876362 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2872005&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fseroquel_promoted_as_weight_neutral_when_company_knew_it_produced_large_weight_gain.html According to court documents released to Bloomberg yesterday, AstraZeneca pushed its sales reps to claim that Seroquel, the company's atypical antipsychotic, was "weight neutral" four years after the company had determined that there were "clinically significant" weight gains among users of the drug (and increased risk of diabetes). "AstraZeneca’s 'global strategy is to demonstrate to consumers that Seroquel has a weight-neutral profile,' Debbie Holdsworth, a marketing official, wrote in a 'dear colleague' letter dated May 14, 2001." Here's the BS explanation of the weight neutral claim by John Patterson, a former AZ executive: "'If you look at the population as a whole, some are below weight, some are average weight and some are above weight, so that taken together the effect of Sero... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2872005 Wed, 07 Oct 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2872005 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2855816&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F10%2Fuk_girl_who_died_after_hpv_vaccine_injection_had_advanced_cancer.html For now, this settles questions raised earlier this week after a 14-year-old girl in England died soon after receiving an injection of Cervarix, an HPV vaccine. As it turns out, the poor girl had advanced cancer that had gotten into her heart and lungs and that's now being called her cause of death instead of the injection until full autopsy results are available. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2855816 Wed, 30 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2855816 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2842775&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fpsychiatrist_turns_down_170000_to_promote_new_antipsychotic.html I think readers of this site are fairly well aware of the respect I have for Tufts University psychiatrist Danny Carlat, who's led the fight in psychiatry to clean up the APA and pharma-sponsored CMEs. My respect for him now goes up by $170,000, the amount Schering-Plough reportedly (scroll down to the bottom of the linked page) offered him to go shill for its recently-approved atypical antipsychotic Saphris and the amount which Carlat turned down. "In a letter to doctors, Schering-Plough says 'you must present the Schering-Plough approved materials provided to you.' The company offered one psychiatrist, Dr. Daniel Carlat, a Tufts University Medical School professor, up to $170,000 over two years to give 125 45-minute talks in restaurants, in his office, and by telephone and the Internet.... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2842775 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2842775 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2842774&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2F60_massachusetts_docs_get_money_from_eli_lilly_to_promote_its_drugs.html News is out in the Boston Globe that Eli Lilly's recently-released list of payouts to docs includes 60 Massachusetts doctors, including some at Boston Medical Center--the main hospital for the Boston University School of Medicine. The university has ordered the docs in question to stop doing talks for industry. It's refreshing to see a university take these sorts of things so seriously and so promptly. How much money were doctors getting? What products were they promoting? "At Boston Medical Center, Dr. Brian McGeeney, a neurologist, received $30,000 during that period [first three months of 2009], and Dr. Elliot Sternthal, an endocrinologist, was paid $11,587.50, according to a faculty registry on Lilly’s website." McGeeney was promoting Cymbalta, Lilly's anti-depressant, presumably ... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2842774 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2842774 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2842776&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fuk_girl_dies_after_getting_hpv_vaccine.html This is alarming: The UK press is reporting that a 14-year-old girl died soon after being given GlaxoSithKline's HPV vaccine Cervarix. A few other girls at her school took ill after getting the vaccine. Cervarix is not yet approved in the US, but GSK has submitted it to the FDA for approval, which is expected later this year. What a terrible tragedy, exactly the kind of thing opponents of mandatory vaccinations for HPV feared could happen with Merck's Gardasil. Via Sexorat Sufferers. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2842776 Sun, 27 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2842776 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2832396&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=34768&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpharmagossip.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F09%2Fdesperate-pharmas-fight-for-new.html “Some of our competitors are desperate because they pay just an incredible price for some medicines. And if it’s a matter of life or death for them, then maybe it makes sense for them, but not to us. So sometimes we may lose some partnerships for financial reasons, which is frustrating.”Story (Source: PharmaGossip) PharmaGossip blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2832396 Fri, 25 Sep 2009 03:41:00 +0100 2832396 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2832382&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Ffan_pages_for_pharmaceuticals.html The Federal Trade Commission is going to hold public hearings on creating regulations so that pharma companies can use social media (ie, Facebook, Twitter, networking sites) to promote their drugs. Like they don't have enough promotion opportunities already. I'd assume the FDA will also have to get involved in this somehow since drug promotion is also its regulatory bailiwick. The folks at digidaydaily.com think it's a lovely idea--I don't--and have a suggestion: "Create Fan Pages: It’s in the company’s best interest to supervise and add some credibility to a Seroquel community for bipolar adults, or a Paxil community for depressed patients. If you don’t agree go on Facebook and look at the unsupervised version." Whomever wrote this is utterly clueless if he thinks Seroquel and Pa... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2832382 Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2832382 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2832381&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fpaxil_birth_defects_testimony_now_online.html By which I mean that Bob Fiddaman of Seroxat Sufferers fame has gotten pdfs of opening arguments and the testimony of psychiatrist David Healy and another plaintiff's expert witness and put them online right here. More will come later as the trial, which is taking place in Philadelphia, continues. This will include some never-seen-before documents regarding what GlaxoSmithKline knew and when it knew it about birth defects problems with Paxil. The opening arguments--both sides--are well worth a read. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2832381 Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2832381 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2824406&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fglaxo_defunds_cmes_while_funding_them_under_the_table.html On Monday, GlaxoSmithKline US announced that beginning next year it would no longer fund medical education companies to put on CME's for doctors, a practice that has come under increasing scrutiny by Congress, the press and physicians because the pharma-sponsored CME's are little more than advertisements for the company's drugs and leave docs with little information about competing products. GSK makes Paxil, Wellbutrin and Lamictal, although they likely do no CME's for any of the drugs since all three are now off-patent. But Danny Carlat, a Tufts University psychiatrist who's policed this issue harder than anyone else, has gotten GSK to admit that it's carving a huge loophole into its new policy by claiming that 20 yet-to-be-named academic medical centers will run the GSK-funded CME's but... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2824406 Tue, 22 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2824406 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2814678&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fgrassleys_sleuth_gets_press_in_nature.html Most of you are aware of a long-running campaign by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) to ferret out undisclosed pharma company funding of academic researchers who also wind up taking federal research money. Well, it ain't the Senator who does all the digging that leads to him going after the likes of Emory University psychiatrist Charles Nemeroff and Harvard University psych researchers. Instead, it is Paul Thacker, a former journalist and an investigator for the Senator, who is making researchers' lives hell--and appropriately so. I've known this for a long time but have kept my yapper shut when writing about Sen. Grassley. Anyway, Nature has a nice article on Thacker and it includes Nemeroff himself basically apologizing for his mess and claiming he was in compliance with disclosure rules ... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2814678 Sun, 20 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2814678 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2807860&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fpfizer_got_nami_to_pimp_for_geodon_paid_for_docs_helicopter_flights.html This is a good get by Jim Edwards at bnet.com: one of the whistleblower lawsuits that was part of the recent $2.3 billion settlement between the feds and Pfizer over Bextra, Geodon and other drugs contains some eye-popping claims. Prime among them is that Pfizer funded NAMI as a "Trojan Horse" that then specifically promoted on its website off-label uses of Geodon in the elderly and, yes, children. Go read Edwards' posting to see what Pfizer and NAMI were up to. While it's not clear to me what constitutes promotion per se for NAMI, the reality is that NAMI is not supposed to promote specific drugs--although I've caught them promoting Invega in the past--and it sure shouldn't be promoting off-label uses of any drug. Yet here's this from NAMI's website: "While not approved by the FDA for ... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2807860 Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2807860 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2804201&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fbigger_than_prozac.html There's a smallish buzz around a new drug called Valdoxan (agomelatine), an anti-depressant recently approved in Europe that's being touted as more effective than Prozac and other commonly-used anti-depressants and as having virtually no side effects. To whit, from the Mirror: "New research shows that agomelatine - the first antidepressant in over a decade - is more effective than Prozac in treating depression. And it is not associated with some of the common side-effects of antidepressant drugs such as weight gain, sleep difficulties and sexual problems. "A study found the £30-a-month drug, also known as Valdoxan, helped 77.7 per cent of people with severe depression compared with 68.8 per cent on Prozac. The data was presented at the European Congress of Neuropsychopharmacology in Ist... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2804201 Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2804201 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2800674&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fglaxo_exec_suggested_hiding_negative_paxil_studies.html After the first day of a trial against GlaxoSmithKline for allegedly hiding birth defects data from users of its anti-depressant Paxil, Bloomberg reports: "An executive of GlaxoSmithKline Plc, the world’s second-biggest drugmaker, talked about burying negative studies linking its antidepressant drug Paxil to birth defects, according to a company memo introduced in trial. "'If neg, results can bury,' Glaxo executive Bonnie Rossello wrote in a 1997 memo on what the company would do if forced to conduct animal studies on the drug. The memo was read during opening statements in the trial of a lawsuit brought by the family of an injured child." There will apparently be many more documents--ones unseen by the FDA and Congress--introduced at this trial, so stay tuned. After several years of... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2800674 Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2800674 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2796760&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fcourt_rules_glaxo_must_reveal_paxil_birth_defects_emails.html This from Bloomberg today in the first court case against GlaxoSmithKline over allegations that the company's anti-depressant Paxil caused fatal heart defects in a newborn child whose mother had taken the drug while pregnant: "U.S. District Judge Nancy Gertner in Boston today refused to block William Seale’s family from reviewing e-mails and other communications between Glaxo and Boston University researchers over Paxil’s birth-defect risks. The 1-year-old Seale, whose pregnant mother took the antidepressant, died in 2004 after three surgeries to address heart defects, according to court filings. "Seale’s family contends officials at London-based Glaxo, which funded the birth-defect research, sought to influence the study’s results to help protect the company from lawsuits, Gertn... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2796760 Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2796760 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2793399&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Flilly_sponsors_fibromyalgia_website.html A new website, knowfibro.com, has popped up and interestingly its open and transparent about its sponsorship by Eli Lilly and the National Fibromyalgia Association, a California-based non-profit. NFA is in turn partially funded by Lilly, Forest Labs and other pharma companies. NFA claims that upwards of 10 million Americans suffer from the chronic pain condition, although fibromyalgia is controversial among some doctors who claim it doesn't exist. (I've got no opinion on that point.) So fibro sure could be big business for Big Pharma. Lilly's anti-depressant Cymbalta is approved in the US for fibromyalgia treatment, although it was rejected for that indication by European regulators. Whatever anyone makes of fibro and whether anti-depressants do much to address it, it sure is interesting ... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2793399 Sun, 13 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2793399 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2790270&cid=t_99409_90_f&fid=36413&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dcscience.net%2F%3Fp%3D2222 In July 2008 I wrote an editorial in the New Zealand Medical Journal (NZMJ), at the request of its editor. The title was  Dr Who? deception by chiropractors.  It was not very flattering and it resulted in a letter from lawyers representing the New Zealand Chiropractic Association.  Luckily the editor of the NZMJ, Frank Frizelle, is a man of principle, and the legal action was averted. It also resulted in some interesting discussions with disillusioned chiropractors that confirmed one’s worst fears.  Not to mention revealing the internecine warfare between one chiropractor and another. This all occurred before the British Chiropractic Association sued Simon Singh for defamation.  The strength of the reaction to that foolhardy action now has chiropractors wond... DC's goodscience blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2790270 Sun, 13 Sep 2009 16:00:43 +0100 2790270 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2786252&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fhigh_rate_of_ghostwriting_at_major_medical_journals.html A new study out from the editors of JAMA, which I've not seen in full yet, conducted an online survey of authors with published work in six leading medical journals--JAMA and the NEJM included--and found a ridiculously high rate of ghostwriting going on. "Among authors of 630 articles who responded to an online questionnaire created by the researchers, 7.8 percent acknowledged contributions to their articles by people whose work should have qualified them to be named as authors on the papers but who were not listed. "According to the study, responding authors reported a 10.9 percent rate of ghostwriting in The New England Journal of Medicine, the highest rate among the journals." This is simply outrageous and it's got to be pretty embarrassing for the journals involved. It's equally app... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2786252 Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2786252 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2782299&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fama_journal_to_investigate_unreported_conflicts_in_article_ajp_silent.html Last week I wrote about possible undisclosed conflicts of interest involving Joan Luby, a Washington University psychiatry professor, and published studies of hers in the Archives of General Psychiatry, published by the AMA, and the American Journal of Psychiatry, published by the American Psychiatric Association. I brought the possible conflicts to the attention of the journals' editors and to Luby herself. Yesterday, I received an email from from Joseph Coyle, editor of the AGP and a psychiatry professor at Harvard University: "I apologize for the delay in responding to your inquiry, but I was on vacation and out of email contact. We take your allegations seriously and will look into the issue." So the AGP is going to look into Luby's possible disclosures on a paper published in the j... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2782299 Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2782299 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2762130&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fpfizer_fined_23_billion_for_illegal_promotion_of_bextra_geodon.html In an eye-popping move, pharma giant Pfizer has agreed to pay $2.3 billion to settle charges of illegal marketing brought by the Department of Justice involving the painkiller Bextra, the antipsychotic Geodon, Zyvox, an antibiotic, and Lyrica, an anti-epileptic. The settlement includes a $1.2 billion criminal fine, a record, and a $105 million criminal forfeiture. "Authorities said Pfizer's salesmen and women created phony doctor requests for medical information in order to send unsolicited information to doctors about unapproved uses and dosages." Pfizer is also paying $1 billion to reimburse Medicaid. Just anther day in the realms of Big Pharma. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2762130 Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2762130 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2758108&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fno_answer_from_journal_ama.html Yesterday, I wrote of an apparent undisclosed conflict of interest in a paper where a researcher had asserted that 3-year-old kids experience chronic depression--"preschool depression" so called--but the same researcher had received monies from AstraZeneca and possibly others with the last five years. The paper appeared in the Archives of General Psychiatry last month which requires disclosure of all pharma payouts and the like within the past five years. I emailed both the journal's editor and the press office of the American Medical Association to ask what they would do to look into the non-disclosure and if they would issue a correction in the journal. I got no reply. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2758108 Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2758108 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2758109&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F09%2Fdocuments_show_lexapro_promoted_by_tens_of_millions_in_doctor_lunches_lectures.html Apparently a copy of Forest Labs marketing plan to Lexapro has been circulating through the US Senate and the New York Times has an article on it. Lexapro racked up $2.3 billion in sales in 2008, even though there are substantial questions about whether it works any better than Celexa (much less other anti-depressants), another Forest anti-depressant from which it is derived and which is now available as a generic drug. The marketing plan is linked on the NYT's website, but I've not been able to download it yet as the paper's website is having some hiccups today. so from the NYT article itself: "Forest’s 2004 plan for marketing Lexapro offers detailed information about how the company planned to direct this money to doctors. "Under 'Rep Promotional Programs,' the document said the com... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2758109 Mon, 31 Aug 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2758109 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2752131&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F08%2Fflorida_neurologist_earns_tens_of_thousands_speaking_for_eli_lilly.html Remember that list Eli Lilly recently released detailing what doctors it's paying $22 million in consulting fees to? Well, the St. Petersburg Times had a great piece the other day on one of Lilly's top doctors in the Tampa Bay area, who is making oodles speaking on behalf of Lilly's drugs. "Lilly's top earner in the Tampa Bay area was Dr. Maria-Carmen Wilson, a neurologist who is director of Tampa General Hospital's Headache & Pain Center and a professor at USF College of Medicine. She also is director of USF's headache medicine fellowship program, co-director of the division of pain medicine and associate director of both the neurology residency program and pain medicine fellowship program. Her annual salary from USF is $195,410.95. "Despite her busy schedule at the university, Wilson f... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2752131 Sun, 30 Aug 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2752131 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2716216&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F08%2Fbig_pharma_thanks_sen_patty_murray.html Some of you may have seen television ads along the lines of one running in the Seattle area. It's underwritten by PhRMA, the trade group for Big Pharma formally known as Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. The ad asks viewers to pick up the phone and thank Senator Patty Murray (D-Washington) for her hard work on health care reform. I wouldn't be shocked if you are seeing a similar version of the same ad running in your part of the country. For those of you who don't follow politics closely, Sen. Murray is number three in the Senate's Democratic leadership and is a rainmaker of a fundraiser for Congressional Dems. She's kind of become a latter day Henry "Scoop" Jackson, the late Senator from Washington State who was a huge force in the Senate in the 60s and 70s. I mentio... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2716216 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2716216 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2716217&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F08%2Fglaxo_had_ghostwriting_program_to_promote_paxil.html The AP is out with a report that GlaxoSmithKline had a major ghostwriting program in place to help promote its anti-depressant Paxil. "An internal company memo instructs salespeople to approach physicians and offer to help them write and publish articles about their positive experiences prescribing the drug. "Known as the CASPPER program, the paper explains how the company can help physicians with everything from 'developing a topic,' to 'submitting the manuscript for publication.'" "The document was uncovered by the Baum Hedlund PC law firm of Los Angeles, which is representing hundreds of former Paxil users in personal injury and wrongful death suits against GlaxoSmithKline. The firm alleges the company downplayed several risks connected with its drug, including increased suicidal beh... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2716217 Tue, 18 Aug 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2716217 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2890921&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34849&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPWBlogs-Trouble%2F%7E3%2FxxU07wEAouA%2F One of the apparent contradictions inherent in medicine: Just when you think you’ve discovered something new and helpful, research comes out to suggest that it may be counterproductive. Invega has now come out with a different formulation: the sustained release. Apparently, this is the first atypical to be approved for the once-monthly injection formulation, though there are other neuroleptics used in this fashion. Personally, I’d love a once-monthly instead of the everyday pill. Bring it, yo evildoers at AstraZeneca! I’m ready for my Seroquel shot! Or maybe not. A new Lancet study says older antipsychotics, like clozapine, are safer over the long term than Seroquel, Zyprexa and Risperdal. From the L.A. Times health blog: Researchers in Finland, where clozapine is still ... The Trouble With Spikol blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2890921 Fri, 07 Aug 2009 15:00:07 +0100 2890921 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2674476&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F08%2Fhow_asleep_is_the_ny_times.html I ask this question in all seriousness in connection with an article in the paper today about "revelations" that pharma giant Wyeth paid ghostwriters to compose "scientific" papers, later published, that touted the benefits of the company's hormone replacement therapies Prempro and Premarin while obscuring problems caused by the drugs. Look at how the paper's lede casts matters: "Newly unveiled court documents show that ghostwriters paid by a pharmaceutical company played a major role in producing 26 scientific papers backing the use of hormone replacement therapy in women, suggesting that the level of hidden industry influence on medical literature is broader than previously known." "Broader than perviously known?" Is the Times kidding us? Or itself? Industry influence--hidden and over... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2674476 Tue, 04 Aug 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2674476 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2667711&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F08%2Flilly_details_22_million_in_payouts_to_doctor_consultants.html Via the Wall Street Journal's Health blog comes word that Eli Lilly has just released a list of payouts to doctors acting as consultants for the company and likely speaking on behalf of their drugs to other doctors. The payouts total $22 million in the first quarter of 2009. I did a quick read of the list, but none of the usual suspects from the world of psychiatry jumped out at me. Feel free to look it over yourself and let me know if you see anything noteworthy. Of course, Lilly is deeply involved in areas outside of psychiatry, especially cancer and diabetes treatments. For what my opinion is worth, although I find many of these consulting arrangements to be sleazy, I admire Lilly for detailing them publicly. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2667711 Sun, 02 Aug 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2667711 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2653993&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F07%2Ffda_reviewer_calls_abouttobeapproved_antipsychotic_unsafe.html There was a flurry of attention yesterday in the business press around the still-awaiting-approval drug Saphris (asenapine), an atypical antipsychotic made by Schering-Plough. In briefing documents, the FDA's psychiatry products chief Thomas Laughren said that the company had demonstrated effectiveness in trials of the drug as a treatment for schizophrenia and that it was about as safe as other atypicals. Which is to say not very safe at all, given the well-known problems with drugs like Zyprexa and Seroquel. It sounds as if the drug is on its way to FDA approval for schizophrenia. What's troubling to me is this posting from the blog Shearlings Got Plowed, which tracks problems at Schering-Plough, identifies an internal FDA email showing an FDA reviewer who in 2008 recommended that the d... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2653993 Tue, 28 Jul 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2653993 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2637994&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F07%2Fwyeth_again_fails_to_detail_pristiq_sales.html Wyeth yesterday announced its second quarter results and once again failed to detail sales of its new and heavily-advertised anti-depressant Pristiq. The company only noted in its announcement that the drug had "higher sales," but offered no sales data. That's better than earlier this year when the drug hardly garnered a mention in earlier financial reports. What this means is that the metabolite of Effexor--which rang up over 700 million in sales in the second quarter--isn't generating enough sales figures to even be worth mentioning to investors. So much for the creepy wind-up doll ads. (Source: Furious Seasons) Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2637994 Thu, 23 Jul 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2637994 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2571180&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34849&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftrouble.pwblogs.com%2F2009%2F07%2F02%2Fsuperb-advice%2F Thanks to advocate Fran Hazam for forwarding Dr. Lloyd I. Sederer’s article “Can You Trust Your Psychiatrist” from HuffPost. Citing influence from Big Pharma — and basically explaining the way the influence filters down to you — Sederer breaks down what you need to do to ensure the best care: First, be an informed consumer. Just [...] (Source: The Trouble With Spikol) The Trouble With Spikol blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2571180 Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:55:39 +0100 2571180 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2561547&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F07%2Ffda_panel_votes_to_ban_percocet_vicodin.html An FDA advisory panel yesterday voted to recommend a ban on the widely-prescribed painkillers Percocet and Vicodin. Percocet (and its kissing cousin Endocet) is actually a combination of Oxycodone, an almost century-old opioid analgesic medication synthesized from opium-derived thebaine, and acetaminophen. Vicodin is a narcotic analgesic product containing hydrocodone, derived from codeine and thebaine, and acetaminophen. The FDA panel was convened to advise the FDA on how to address tens of thousands of cases of liver damage each year connected to patients taking high doses of acetaminophen either in OTC products like Tylenol or in prescription painkillers like Percocet as well as in cold remedies containing acetaminophen. Reportedly, FDA data showed that the vast majority of acetaminop... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2561547 Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2561547 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2561546&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F07%2Fchantix_zyban_wellbutrin_to_get_black_box_warning_on_behavior_changes_suicidality.html This should come as no surprise to anyone, but today the FDA announced that it would require a new black box warning on certain smoking-cessation drugs, namely Chantix and Zyban, and would extend the warning to Wellbutrin (Zyban's name as an anti-depressant) and generic versions of Wellbutrin known as buproprion. The warning will notify patients and doctors of the risk of serious changes in behavior, depressed mood, hostility, and suicidal thoughts when taking these drugs. "[FDA safety chief] Woodcock said health care professionals who prescribe Chantix and Zyban should monitor their patients for any unusual changes in mood or behavior after starting these drugs. She added that patients should immediately contact their health care professional if they experience such changes. "The FDA’... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2561546 Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2561546 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2553226&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FEPharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FhNkDk4n2A2A%2Fhoffman-la-roche-is-severing-its-ties.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2553226 Mon, 29 Jun 2009 16:13:00 +0100 2553226 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2553219&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34849&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftrouble.pwblogs.com%2F2009%2F06%2F29%2Fzoloft-made-me-do-it-try-to-kill-myself-and-murder-my-girlfriend%2F Despite the glib title of this ongoing TTWS feature (Blank Made Me Do It), there are some cases that are quite serious and upsetting. The one of Randall Robbins II is that kind of case, if only because it brings up–for the umpteenth time–this issue of those black-box warnings on antidepressants. From the L.A. Times: Randall [...] (Source: The Trouble With Spikol) The Trouble With Spikol blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2553219 Mon, 29 Jun 2009 15:16:01 +0100 2553219 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2523747&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34849&url=http%3A%2F%2Ftrouble.pwblogs.com%2F2009%2F06%2F25%2Fgoodbye-anti-sacred-and-profane-writing-machine%2F After a long battle with cancer, PW staff writer, Guardian columnist, punk-rock novelist, NME gadfly, gender-twisting rebel comedian and poet Steven Wells has gone on to other things. Well, not really. According to Steven, there’s no such thing as the afterlife, and if there is, I guarantee he’s really, really pissed off right now. I [...] (Source: The Trouble With Spikol) The Trouble With Spikol blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2523747 Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:23:41 +0100 2523747 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2513084&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F06%2Fpsychiatrists_attacking_psychiatrists_for_blogging_on_disclosure_controversies.html There are a few bits of news in this post but they are tough to organize: suffice to say that the politics around the forthcoming DSM-V are becoming very intense and nasty and, slightly connected, psychiatrist-bloggers Doug Bremner (Emory University) and Danny Carlat (Tufts University) are drawing the ire of some colleagues for writing honestly about psychiatry's epic conflict-of-interest problems, earning both a marginalization campaign from others in psychiatry. Yes, it is getting ugly out there. First, Bremner notes an in-press article at Psychiatric Times by Allen Frances, a psychiatrist who chaired the DSM-IV committee, is deeply critical of the deeply secretive DSM-V process and delivers a stern assessment of the process, the kind that might embiggen the heart of an anti-psychiatris... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2513084 Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:00:00 +0100 2513084 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2513066&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=35436&url=http%3A%2F%2Fseroxatsecrets.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F06%2F24%2Fantidepressant-use-soars-as-the-recession-bites%2F This from Jamie Doward at The Observer: Fears the recession is affecting the mental health of the nation appear to be borne out by new figures that show prescriptions of antidepressants are soaring. Last year in England there were 2.1m more prescriptions of antidepressants than in 2007, leading to concerns that doctors are increasingly supplying the drugs as a “quick fix” without attempting to address the underlying cause of the problems. In total, 36m prescriptions were given out, an increase of 24% over the past five years. “The increase in the number of people being prescribed antidepressants is deeply disturbing,” said the Liberal Democrats’ health spokesman, Norman Lamb, who obtained the figures. “England has become a true Prozac nation.” Lamb... seroxat secrets... blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2513066 Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:46:36 +0100 2513066 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2474160&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F06%2Fnew_zyprexa_documents_show_lilly_ghostwrote_zyprexa_studies.html A new batch of Zyprexa documents was unsealed in US District Court in New York last month, something that escaped my notice due to all the Seroquel documents being released elsewhere. Bloomberg got the documents--which I'll attempt to obtain myself--and yesterday had a wire story on Lilly openly ghostwrote articles for allegedly independent researchers and then shepherded their publication, a true manipulation of the academic publishing process. Apparently, this goes on a fair amount in pharma circles, leading one expert to tell Bloomberg that such ghostwriting has created "a huge body of medical literature that society can’t trust." Do ya think? What's interesting is that the FDA has no regulations to address this sort of thing. "Ensuring that medical journal articles presented Zypr... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2474160 Fri, 12 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100 2474160 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2474165&cid=t_99409_140_f&fid=34843&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.furiousseasons.com%2Farchives%2F2009%2F06%2Fsen_grassley_pops_yet_another_psych_researcher_over_pharma_money.html Yes, it's happened yet again, as the Wall Street Journal's Health blog reported yesterday, Sen. Charles Grassley has uncovered yet another psych researcher who was getting oodles of money from pharma companies while also doing federally-funded research, this time on the use of anti-depressants in pregnant women. Emory University psychiatrist Zachary Stowe allegedly got $154,400 from GlaxoSmithKline in 2007 and $99,300 during the first 10 months of 2008. Apparently, there is no bottom to this sort of mad love between pharma companies and academic researchers. Stowe is of course the second Emory psych researcher to come under Grassley's glare. Charles Nemeroff is the other and last year he stepped down as chair of the university psychiatry department. My Grassley back catalog is here. (Sou... Furious Seasons blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2474165 Thu, 11 Jun 2009 04:00:00 +0100 2474165 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2453186&cid=t_99409_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2Fs0KKhY6Nx3k%2Fneed-to-check-your-cholesterol-there.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2453186 Wed, 03 Jun 2009 13:35:00 +0100 2453186 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2447578&cid=t_99409_99_f&fid=34593&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2Fscienceblogs%2FAyaJ%2F%7E3%2Fj9SkTz-cf_s%2Fplacing_a_vaccine_order_with_c.php Ten days ago Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius announced that the US government was allocating $1 billion to help companies with production costs for a swine flu vaccine. Among the beneficiaries was French vaccine giant, Sanofi-Aventis, whose Sanofi Pasteur unit got a $190 million order. It was likely only the first in a series of expected orders for the company. Sanofi knows how to make vaccines. So what could go wrong? Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post... (Source: Effect Measure) Effect Measure blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2447578 Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:24:47 +0100 2447578