5 out of 6 New Drugs Don't Work
Published by Campbell M Gold in Allopathic · Friday 07 Jun 2024
Tags: 5, out, of, 6, New, Drugs, Don't, Work, pharmaceutical, industry, critic, newly, approved, drugs, benefits, patients, blog, post
Tags: 5, out, of, 6, New, Drugs, Don't, Work, pharmaceutical, industry, critic, newly, approved, drugs, benefits, patients, blog, post
Five out of six new prescription drugs don't work.
A well-known pharmaceutical industry critic asserts that five out of six approved drugs provide "little to no new benefits" for patients...
Professor Donald Light, a sociologist and professor of comparative health policy at the University of Medicine and Dentistry in New Jersey, US, claims that large pharmaceutical companies overstate the benefits of patented medications, spend significant amounts of money encouraging doctors to prescribe them and downplay serious side effects.
He highlights the "toxic side effects" of prescription drugs and their misuse, stating they are a "significant cause of death." For instance, he points to cholesterol-lowering statins as an example of overselling a product as a miracle cure for preventing heart attacks despite evidence indicating potential harm outweighing benefits.
In a paper presented to the American Sociological Association (ASA), Professor Light accuses pharmaceutical companies of creating a "market for lemons," where the seller has more knowledge about the product than the buyer and exploits this information. He argues that drug companies sometimes conceal or minimise information about the severe side effects of new drugs and overstate their benefits.
Furthermore, he claims they spend two to three times more on marketing than on research to persuade doctors to prescribe these new drugs, resulting in doctors being provided with misleading information and misinforming patients about the risks of a new drug.
Professor Light asserts that the pharmaceutical industry fundamentally contributes to a "two-tier market for lemons," which he deems the "most dangerous market for lemons in modern society," with toxic side effects and misuse of prescription drugs being a significant cause of death in the US, surpassing the toll of wars and used car injuries.
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) dismisses his allegations as unsupported and lacking hard evidence. However, Prof Light states that data from independent reviewers indicates that five out of six (85%) new drugs offer few new benefits.
Regarding statins, he argues that drug companies oversimplified the relationship between heart disease, saturated fats, and cholesterol by promoting the message that "cholesterol kills," despite insufficient evidence that statins reduce the risk of heart attacks.
He further argues that current research incentives result in a few drugs significantly improving patients' outcomes while yielding a significant number of minimally innovative drugs each year, which consume the majority of drug costs.
He accuses companies of overwhelming drug regulators with numerous "incomplete, substandard clinical trials," resulting in drugs being approved without a clear understanding of their effectiveness or potential harm.
He also mentions that studies showed doctors were likely to dismiss patient complaints of adverse reactions.
In contrast, the ABPI defends the industry, stating that medicines have saved millions of lives and transformed the management of previously fatal conditions. The association notes that significant unmet medical needs remain, and the pharmaceutical industry actively researches new treatments for these illnesses.
Source: telegraph.co.uk (2010)
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