E-drug: Drugs in the News - Canadian study
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Newspapers highlight benefits of new drugs, ignore risks -
Consumers aren't getting balanced information about new
prescription drugs, says CCPA
(Vancouver) The information Canadians get on new prescription
drugs from a major and trusted source of information - daily
newspapers - is incomplete and may promote unrealistic expectations
about the benefits of new drugs. This is the troubling finding of a
study released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
The first of its kind in Canada, the study examines stories in Canada's
24 largest daily newspapers about five major prescriptions drugs
launched in recent years.
"Canadians are bombarded daily by media stories about new
medicines," says Alan Cassels, a CCPA research associate and the
study's lead author. "When we as consumers, doctors or policy
makers pick up the morning paper to get the lowdown on the latest
breakthrough drug, it is absolutely critical that we get a balanced and
complete picture. Unfortunately, the quality of information provided in
news reports is often poor."
Drugs in the News: How well do Canadian newspapers report the
good, the bad and the ugly of new prescription drugs finds that
newspaper articles more often emphasize the benefits of new drugs,
while little attention is paid to possible harms. Sixty eight percent of
the articles examined made no mention whatsoever of possible
adverse effects, and when identified, these harms were usually
downplayed and mentioned towards the end of the article.
The study also finds that:
* The health effects of drugs are often presented using only
descriptive terms, without also providing precise or scientific
information about the drug's effectiveness.
* Basic information that quantified the benefits or harms of the drugs
was reported in only one out of every four articles-and when it was
provided, 30 percent of the time it was presented in misleading terms.
* When possible harmful effects were mentioned, they were more
often described with language that downplayed the risk to patients
("minor" or "rare"), while benefits were more often described using
language that emphasized the potential benefit ("proven remedy" or
"highly effective").
* Contraindications-those conditions under which it is not safe to take
the drugs-were mentioned in only 4 percent of the articles.
* Only one in six articles mentioned alternative treatment options (for
example, an existing, cheaper drug).
* The financial interests at work behind the scenes-such as who
funded a study about a drug's effectiveness, or the financial
relationship of a patient spokesperson to the drug company-were
noted less than 3 percent of the time.
"Given the importance of a sustainable health care system to the
Canadian public, and the increasing share of public health dollars that
drugs consume, good and complete information is vital," says James
McCormack, a professor in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at
UBC and co-author of the study. "One of the side effects of
incomplete reporting on drugs is that it can lead to wider use than is
warranted. Consumers may ask their doctors to prescribe particular
new drugs, or pressure policy makers into covering new drugs, even
if they are no more effective than existing therapies."
The study's authors agree, however, that reporting on
pharmaceuticals isn't easy for journalists. "It requires an ability to
interpret complex scientific information while resisting the
pharmaceutical industry's aggressive marketing techniques," says
Barbara Mintzes, co-author of the study. "Pharmaceutical companies
make it very easy to write favourable stories about new drugs, while
independent drug information is harder to find."
Dr. Joel Lexchin, an emergency department physician in Toronto and
associate professor in the School of Health Policy and Management
at York University, says he hopes the study will help journalists when
they report on new medications. "The media needs to do a better job
of following the money so that readers can be better informed."
The study includes a journalist's guide to covering prescription drugs,
as well as list of independent sources of drug information.
The complete study is available at www.policyalternatives.ca or by
calling the CCPA office at 604-801-5121. An article based on the
study will also be the cover story in the April 29 issue of the Canadian
Medical Association Journal (CMAJ). For media interviews, call
Shannon Daub at 604-801-5509.
Funding for this research was provided by the Office of Consumer
Affairs of
Industry Canada.