That's what reading the Globe will do to you.
"Ghostwriters paid by a pharmaceutical company played a major role in producing 26 scientific papers backing the use of hormone replacement therapy in women, suggesting that the level of hidden industry influence on medical literature is broader than previously known.... pharmaceutical companies routinely hired medical writing companies to assist authors in drafting manuscripts.... the practice went well beyond the case of Wyeth and hormone therapy, involving numerous drugs from other pharmaceutical companies.... you don’t know which articles are tainted and which aren’t"
Then they ALL ARE!!!!
So you CAN'T BELIEVE a THING the SELF-SERVING, CONFLICT-of-INTEREST, FOR-PROFIT DRUG COMPANIES TELL YOU, readers!
NOT ONE DAMN THING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"Drug company paid ghostwriters backed hormones; Pro-therapy articles a boost for Wyeth" by Natasha Singer, New York Times | August 5, 2009
Newly unveiled court documents show that ghostwriters paid by a pharmaceutical company played a major role in producing 26 scientific papers backing the use of hormone replacement therapy in women, suggesting that the level of hidden industry influence on medical literature is broader than previously known....
That supposed medical consensus benefited Wyeth, the pharmaceutical company that paid a medical communications firm to draft the papers, as sales of its hormone drugs, called Premarin and Prempro, soared to nearly $2 billion in 2001.
But the seeming consensus fell apart in 2002 when a huge federal study on hormone therapy was stopped after researchers found that menopausal women who took certain hormones had an increased risk of invasive breast cancer, heart disease, and stroke. A later study found that hormones increased the risk of dementia in older patients.
Do I even have to comment?
Oh, I'm sure they love their mothers just as much as the rest of us -- they just don't love YOUR MOTHER, 'murkn!
Well, they love here PAYMENTS for the PILLS, but other than that....
The ghostwritten papers were typically review articles, in which an author weighs a large body of medical research and offers a bottom-line judgment about how to treat a particular ailment. The articles appeared in 18 medical journals, including The American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and The International Journal of Cardiology.
The articles did not disclose Wyeth’s role in initiating and paying for the work.
I'm OUTRAGED!!!!!!!
The documents on ghostwriting were uncovered by lawyers suing Wyeth and were made public after a request in court from PLoS Medicine, a medical journal from the Public Library of Science, and The New York Times.
Let's not kill all the lawyers, 'eh?
A spokesman for Wyeth said that the articles were scientifically accurate and that pharmaceutical companies routinely hired medical writing companies to assist authors in drafting manuscripts.
The court documents provide a detailed paper trail showing how Wyeth contracted with a medical communications company to outline articles, draft them, and then solicit top physicians to sign their names, even though many of the doctors contributed little or no writing.
Isn't that FRAUD?
I'm thinking of the grade I would have received in college for such a thing.
The documents suggest the practice went well beyond the case of Wyeth and hormone therapy, involving numerous drugs from other pharmaceutical companies.
“It’s almost like steroids and baseball,’’ said Dr. Joseph S. Ross, an assistant professor of geriatrics at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, who has conducted research on ghostwriting. “You don’t know who was using and who wasn’t; you don’t know which articles are tainted and which aren’t.’’
Because physicians rely on medical literature, the concern about ghostwriting is that doctors might change their prescribing habits after reading certain articles, unaware they were commissioned by a drug company.
Related: Prescribing Our Kids to Death
Wyeth faces 8,400 lawsuits from women who claim that the company’s hormone drugs caused them to develop illnesses.
For which you can take ANOTHER DRUG!!!!
Talk about a GOING CONCERN, huh?
"‘Micro tumors’ rise on the risk scale; Study may alter treatment for breast cancer" by Marilynn Marchione, Associated Press | August 13, 2009
.... For decades, many doctors warned that lifting weights or even heavy groceries could cause painful arm swelling. New research shows that weight training actually helps prevent this problem.
“How many generations of women have been told to avoid lifting heavy objects?’’ Dr. Eric Winer, breast cancer chief at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, lamented after seeing the surprising results of the new study.
“Women who were doing the lifting actually had fewer arm problems because they had better muscle tone.’’
The study was led by Kathryn Schmitz, an exercise scientist at the University of Pennsylvania, and funded by the federal government. Results are in today’s New England Journal of Medicine.
You have tax dollars for this, America? To tell you something you already know?
More than 2.4 million Americans are breast cancer survivors, and the study could mean a big difference in their quality of life. Cancer treatment-related arm swelling now appears to be one of many ailments made better by exercise - not worse, Schmitz said....
In the United States, many women with early stage breast cancer are given hormone blockers.....
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See: Before You Take That Swine Flu Shot
Swine Flu Shot to Slaughter Young and Strong
HOT FLASH(BACK):
"Insurers offer to treat women equally" by Associated Press | May 6, 2009
WASHINGTON - The health insurance industry offered yesterday to stop charging women higher premiums, a surcharge that hits many self-employed women trying to buy their own coverage.
Wait a minute; they get paid less and have to pay more for health coverage?
You women in AmeriKa really are getting f***ed in so many ways, huh?
It was the latest concession from insurers as Congress works to overhaul the nation's $2.5 trillion healthcare system to expand coverage and slow rising costs. Insurers are trying to head off creation of a government health plan that would compete with them in every state.
Instead, they are offering to submit to close government regulation, accepting a series of restrictions they contend would add up to a fairer marketplace and reduce the ranks of the 50 million uninsured. "We are comfortable with that," Karen Ignagni, president of America's Health Insurance Plans, told the Senate Finance Committee at a session on how to cover the uninsured.
I'm not: What Your National Health Plan Will Look Like
Ignagni, who heads the private insurers' trade group, told senators the industry is ready to stop charging women more than men. Healthcare costs for women tend to be higher during childbearing years.
Oh, I see. The PROFITEERING HEALTH INSURANCE COMPANIES USE the KID to GOUGE YOU LADIES!!! You gotta LOVE EQUALITY, 'eh, ladies?
"The disparity between women and men in the individual marketplace is just plain wrong and it has to change," said Senator John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts. Ignagni readily conceded. "We don't believe gender should be a subject of rating," she said.
Well, apparently, you do, liar!!!!
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"Insurers offer concession on premiums" by Sally Cragin, Globe Correspondent | May 6, 2009
WASHINGTON - The health insurance industry offered yesterday to end its practice of charging higher premiums to women if all Americans are required to get coverage, its latest concession as it tries to head off creation of a government insurance plan that would directly compete with private insurers.
But we love our mothers, boy!!!!
Last year, insurers offered to end the practice of denying coverage to sick people....
Need I even comment on that atrocious statement?
Yeah, the last thing health insurance companies ought to be doing is providing health insurance to people.
Time to SCRAP the WHOLE LOT of 'em and GO SINGLE-PAYER!!! Take your pick of whatever model you want, Canada, France, England, Cuba, just ELIMINATE FOR-PROFIT HEALTH CARE!!!!!
Yesterday, Karen Ignagni, president of America's Health Insurance Plans, told the Senate Finance Committee women, whose healthcare costs tend to be higher during childbearing years, should no longer be charged more than men in the individual market.
Oh, yeah, we care ($$$) about our kids, too!!!
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Oh, no, update....
"Wall Street sees it as a potential blockbuster.... The two studies were.... paid for by Amgen.... all the researchers receive consulting, advisory, and other fees from the company and competitors, or are Amgen employees. The biotech company designed the studies, handled data collection and analysis, and helped write the journal reports.... The studies found denosumab caused eczema in some patients, and a dozen women got a serious skin infection"
That sure is some cool acid, 'eh, ladies?
Of course, it's all about you and your health.
"FDA to review expensive injectable drug to fight osteoporosis; Company-funded studies cite lower risk of fracture" by Linda A. Johnson, Associated Press | August 12, 2009
Wall Street sees it as a potential blockbuster crucial to Amgen’s future....
See: The Healthy and Hearty Voice of the Healthcare Lobbyists
The two studies were released online yesterday by the New England Journal of Medicine.
Both were paid for by Amgen, of Thousand Oaks, Calif. Nearly all the researchers receive consulting, advisory, and other fees from the company and competitors, or are Amgen employees. The biotech company designed the studies, handled data collection and analysis, and helped write the journal reports.
Denosumab, an injection just under the skin given only twice a year, would have to compete against eight pills and injected medicines, including estrogen and generic and brand-name Fosamax, the first drug approved for osteoporosis....
Related: Cannabis may prevent osteoporosis
Also see: Marijuana Makes MSM Monitor Mad
Those drugs’ retail prices can range from about $385 a year for generic Fosamax, to between $1,130 and $1,350 for most brand-name pills, to $11,100 a year for injected Forteo. Genetically engineered drugs, made by altering a cell’s DNA or other genetic material, all cost more than $10,000 a year. The studies found denosumab caused eczema in some patients, and a dozen women got a serious skin infection, cellulitis, that sometimes required hospitalization for intravenous antibiotics.
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"Amid questions about approval process, FDA device chief resigns" by Matthew Perrone, AP Business Writer | August 12, 2009
WASHINGTON - The head of the Food and Drug Administration’s medical device division said yesterday he will step down, months after scientists under his leadership alleged they were pressured to approve certain products.
In a letter to agency staffers, Daniel Schultz said he and FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg agreed his resignation “would be in the best interest of the center and the agency.’’
Also see: New FDA Chief to Poison Food Supply
FDA’s device division, which Schultz led for five years, has been under scrutiny since earlier this year when nine scientists wrote to the Obama administration transition team complaining they were pressured to approve medical devices against their professional judgment....
But if the FDA says its okay, then its okay.
FDA Protects Big Pharma While Telling Americans "F*** You!"
FDA Doesn't Care About Cancer
FDA Approval to Immunize Drug Companies From Lawsuits
Between 2006 and 2008, FDA scientists repeatedly rejected a knee repair device from Regen Biologics. In a 2007 rejection letter to the New Jersey company, an FDA reviewer said the device had an increased risk compared with others on the market. FDA scientists recommended rejecting another application in 2008, saying Regen had not shown “that patients who received the device experienced any benefit.’’
Despite these concerns, Schultz approved the device in late 2008. Consumer advocates hailed the news of Schultz’s departure as evidence of a new direction at the FDA....
Translation: this is nothing but a public relations face-lift.
The FDA has been plagued for years by criticisms of dysfunction, following the recalls of drugs like Vioxx - which was linked to heart attack and stroke years after its approval - and a string of outbreaks of food-borne illnesses like salmonella. President Obama tapped Hamburg, a former New York City health commissioner, earlier this year to try to restore the agency’s credibility....
Too late, 'bamer -- and that pick didn't help.
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