E-DRUG: Pharmaceutical industry funding of clinical research
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dear E-druggers,
I have written an article on the implications of pharmaceutical industry
funding of clinical research which will be appearing in the January issue of
the Annals of Pharmacotherapy. The journal posts articles on its web site in
advance of their appearing in print and my piece has just been posted today.
Unfortunately, without a subscription you cannot download the article. I
have a pdf version of the article and anyone who wants a copy can contact me
personally and I'll be happy to send one electronically. I've put the
abstract of the piece below:
This commentary explores the influence of industry funding and offers
suggestions for overcoming some of the problems. First, it is difficult to
obtain funding from some sources for research with limited commercial value.
Second, lack of communication among researchers can impede scientific
progress. Stopping research before meaningful results are available is
another area of concern. Next, suppressed or delayed publication of data may
bias the results of meta-analyses, resulting in incorrect risk-benefit
profiles for drugs. Finally, commercially funded clinical research is more
likely to yield positive results than when funding comes from other sources.
Possible solutions are explored.
Joel Lexchin
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Joel Lexchin MD
121 Walmer Rd.
Toronto ON
Canada M5R 2X8
Tel: 416-964-7186
Fax: 416-923-9515
E mail: joel.lexchin@utoronto.ca