http://www.cnn.com/2005/HEALTH/05/25/drugcompanyinfluence.ap/index.html I never thought that this was anything new. Many of the forum regulars, including myself, already knew about drug companies monopolizing the study results of many not-for-profit medical schools in the US, but somehow it never received much interest from the media until now. What do you all think about this??? Sulla
None of this is new. Articles like this appear regularly in newspapers, etc. all the time. Pharmaceutical companies spend obscene amounts of money on advertising, marketing, etc. If you work in a hospital then you have the regular opportunity to attend a free luncheon that is accompanied by a marketing presentation. Here's the big question . . . When you hear the drug reps talk about how the high cost of drugs is related to the high cost of research, etc. and when you think about all the advertising, all the suits, all the laptops, all the free lunches, dinners, pens, postits, etc. Read up on the history of "the purple pill." This will give you some insight into the basic motivation of the drug companies. Realize that there are rare diseases that can be managed by medication but because the number of people affected is so small, the drug companies will not manufacture the required medications (too expensive to make for such a small number of people - let's just let them suffer). Not that I have any feelings about the issue. Jack
Hi Jack, Thanks for the reply. Yes, I agree that none of this is new. Its a capitalist world; thats why I don't think that there is such a thing as a not-for-profit higher education system. But it is scary that results from medical studies are being manipulated, and in some cases, overly exagerated to sell a new drug that aims at controlling, rather than curing, a particular condition. But then again, without the money from these companies, there wouldn't be as much funding to do medical research. Do you think that more media coverage on this matter would be good? or do you think it would not make a difference? Sulla
I couldn't stop thinking about the Harrison Ford film, The Fugitive, in which the entire murder scenario was a set up to cover for faked pharmaceutical research results. In answer to your question, I think most issues are best examined in the full light of the noonday sun. Jack
