Pharma Enlists Patients To Prevent The Release Of Clinical Trial Data

The pharmaceutical industry is quietly working on a concerted, behind-the-scenes effort to prevent the release of clinical trial data, a flashpoint of controversy in recent years over allegations that negative information is being withheld. Trade groups in the US and Europe have so far enlisted patient advocacy groups to discourage regulators from allowing the data to become public, The Guardian reports. However, their plan also calls for reaching out to scientific organizations and businesses about the risk of releasing or sharing confidential data, and possibly creating a network of academics across Europe to act as spokespeople for the cause. The plan was outlined in a memo written by Richard Bergstrom, director general of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations. The move comes as the debate over clinical trial data heats up. The European Medicines Agency, for instance, is pushing to publish clinical study reports that are filed by drugmakers, although AbbVie and one other drugmaker recently went to court to block the EMA from releasing data (more here). Meanwhile, the European parliament considers legislation to require data is published in a public database (look here). The industry trade groups maintain that releasing such proprietary data may violate trade secrets and could also cause health scares if the data is misinterpreted, an argument advanced by the patient advocacy groups, which are often in the forefront of publicizing treatments ...
Source: Pharmalot - Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: Source Type: blogs