Patients at risk after scientists withhold test results from clinical trials of new medicines
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2082116/Patients-risk-scientists-withhold-test-results-clinical-trials-new-medicines.html?ito=feeds-newsxml
There is already a huge bias in science where (almost) only positive results are ever reported, but, at least in most cases, there are not dollars riding on the publication either way. However, in the world of clinical research, there is almost always huge dollars riding on the outcome of research and negative trials (i.e., those that failed to match the expectations of the authors) rarely, if ever, make it to peer reviewed journals, thus the information is lost forever. Since it is well know that data is subject to statistical manipulation, by hiding negative results it is quite trivial to amplify random results into statistical significance or, using the same techniques, minimize side effects. The reason why everyone should care is that this results in unsafe and/or unproven drugs getting approval for sale to an already credulous and ignorant population (and I am not just talking about doctors!). I believe (and I thought NIH was putting this policy into place, but perhaps there are too many loop holes) that all clinical results should be entered into a common, _public_, database regardless of the outcome of the trials. That this isn’t the case, to my mind, calls for an examination searching for a government conspiracy at the highest levels (and I am not being cute here, I am serious). Since our country is run by an oligarchy and since pharmaceutical companies are clearly a large part of that ruling coalition, it seems clear that the system is being manipulated to produce the illusion that the FDA is riding oversight on the testing of new drugs. The reality is far from that, however, and positive clinical trials are routinely ‘purchased’ and used as justification for a marketing campaign. And if that doesn’t work, then the companies ‘leak’ the positive results (with, of course, all negative results or side effects removed) to the target clinical population and then complain that the FDA refuses to allow them to market this supposed life saving drug to those in need.
Man does our system stink!
