Written by Alex on May 11, 2010 – 1:24 pm
Are we only a nation of money givers or are we a nation of people who care so much that we will extend ourselves to the point of inconvenience to help others
Written by Alex on April 27, 2010 – 10:39 am
A Ugandan health official said no trials were conducted at IDI. I was left wondering what was accurate: some trials, no trials, or lots of trials. What I was sure of was that Pfizer appeared to be a slippery operation when it came to trials . Recent articles have showed this to be true:
Written by Alex on September 24, 2009 – 10:16 am
Amazing. Truly amazing. The news today is that an AIDS vaccine has shown remarkable progress in clinical trials in Thailand. (Read AP story here.) There have been more than 100 AIDS vaccine trials in the last 20 years and none of them have gotten close to showing the kind of promise this one is showing. However, as we all know, it is only promise – not a cure or preventative. Much can go wrong. As one scientist soberly said about the findings of the trial: Now the work begins.
Having travelled to and spent time in eastern Africa to research Chasing Medical Miracles …
Written by Alex on August 7, 2009 – 8:24 am
Some really fascinating stories get us going into the weekend. Interesting and heartfelt responses to NYT article about cancer trials and why people don’t volunteer for trials… although I’m not convinced of their necessity at all, very cool story about iphone and Windows apps for clinical trials … and an update on efforts in the U.S. and abroad about progress on trials for a swine flu vaccine…
Why Patients Turn Down Clinical Trials – New York Times – I read with interest your article about the chilling effect that low recruitment for clinical trials has had on the search for meaningful treatments.
Written by Alex on July 30, 2009 – 8:37 am
I was on the Diane Rehm Show, out of WAMU in Washington DC, yesterday, July 29 to discuss Chasing Medical Miracles and clinical trials in general. Susan Page, the Washington bureau chief for USA Today was the guest host for Diane. I thought the hour was interesting and wide-ranging but you can listen and decide for yourself by clicking on “More” then clicking the link there to access a Real Player and a Windows Media version of the interview.
Written by Alex on July 3, 2009 – 9:42 am
The Good News: The first clinical trial for healing an injured heart by using a subject’s own stem cells is underway. Pfizer proactively and voluntarily halted a trial after results showed it was to likely to be successful.
The Bad News: The validity of clinical trials conducted China is under scrutiny because of too many positive results. A columnist says some trials may be rushed and done poorly to get drugs to market quickly.
All in all, another normal day of mixed news about whether trials are mostly helping or harming. Here’s to hoping that on this July 4 eve we start moving in a direction where there’s more good news than bad news for the American people and the global community.
Doubts Cast On Credibility Of Some Published Clinical Trials – Science Daily (press release) – USA- However, all RCTs of pre-market drug clinical trial were authentic, and RCTs conducted at hospitals affiliated with medical universities were more likely to …
Written by Alex on June 15, 2009 – 9:03 am
India has taken a big step toward making their clinical trials more public and open… also an interesting story out of Australia regarding microbicide trials for an HIV vaccine – the kind conducted in Uganda… plus the book Chasing Medical Miracles is out in wide distribution so go buy a copy! Also, for comprehensive information on trials for pay, please visit Paul Clough’s excellent and popular site Just another Lab Rat at http://www.jalr.org.
Now, all human clinical trials to be registered – Times of India – India – BANGALORE: In a significant move aimed at making clinical trials on human beings more ethical and transparent, the Drugs Controller of India has ruled for … See all stories on this topic
Written by Alex on June 11, 2009 – 9:42 am
Clinical trials are starting on a malaria vaccine. The importance of this research cannot be overstated. More than perhaps any other disease in human history, malaria has killed millions – including one million just last year — decimated millions of other lives, and hampered the full development of Africa. This is a great step in a new direction to eradicating this killer. Let’s see what happens as things progress…
African Clinical Trial Begins for Malaria Vaccine – DOTmed.com (press release) – New York, NY, USA – Researchers have started a major clinical trial in Africa of what is hoped to be the world’s first vaccine against malaria. … See all stories on this topic
Written by Alex on May 29, 2009 – 8:56 am
Money money money! There’s lots and lots of business news about clinical trials today. It’s a good reminder that this is a $24 billion-a-year industry that, from all indications, is weathering the recession well. Investments in trials for a flu vaccine in the United States, the development of trials and green technology (a new and potentially fascinating aspect of trials emerging now), even the impact of good ‘ol aspect are all being studied around the world and can be found in today’s update.
Australia CSL: gets $180 mln US flu vaccine order – Reuters – USA – CSL expects its H1N1 vaccine to be ready within a few months, with the company planning to start clinical trials to make sure the vaccine is safe and … See all stories on this topic
Written by Alex on May 18, 2009 – 8:37 am
Controversy doesn’t derail stem cell progress – USA Today – USA – Unfortunately, he suggests that many of the things that drove gene therapy to try clinical trials before the biology behind the science was understood are …