Diabetes drug trial unethical and dangerous, researcher charges

'Dr. David Juurlink, chief of clinical pharmacology and toxicology at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center in Toronto, was the lead author of a 2009 study that found that compared to elderly diabetics taking a drug called pioglitazone (marketed as Actos), those taking Avandia were about 30% more likely to suffer heart failure or death. On Tuesday, Juurlink joined with Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of health research for the consumer watchdog group Public Citizen, in calling a further clinical trial pitting the two diabetes drugs against each other "unethical" and "dangerous."'


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Glaxo Funded Backers of 'Danger' Drug

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'Sales of Avandia plunged after research in 2007 linked the drug with an increased risk of heart attacks'

'More than nine out of 10 scientists who backed a drug at the centre of a safety scare had financial links to the pharmaceutical industry, a study has found. The disclosure will renew concern about the influence of the multinational companies on patient safety, where a warning about a drug can wipe billions from their balance sheets.

The pharmaceutical industry has become adept at manipulating results and selectively withholding unfavourable data that could expose patients to harm. Now it is accused of skewing the debate over one drug, Avandia, prescribed to millions of people around the world with Type 2 diabetes. Avandia, made by the British multinational GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which helps diabetics control their blood sugar levels, was linked with an increased risk of heart attacks in research published in 2007.'

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GSK lied for years about their drug causing heart attacks - US Senate report

GlaxoSmithKline denies that its diabetes drug Avandia causes heart problems.

Senate report links diabetes drug Avandia to heart attacks

'The diabetes drug Avandia is linked with tens of thousands of heart attacks, and drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline knew of the risks for years but worked to keep them from the public, according to a Senate committee report released Saturday.'

"Americans have a right to know there are serious health risks associated with Avandia and GlaxoSmithKline had a responsibility to tell them," said U.S. Senator Max Baucus, a Democrat and committee chairman. "Patients trust drug companies with their health and their lives and GlaxoSmithKline abused that trust."'

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