Posted by Anyuser on August 1, 2002, at 10:06:52
In reply to Re: thanks! (nm) » katekite, posted by Dr. Bob on July 31, 2002, at 18:45:28
Here's a link to a recent Medscape article by the good Dr. Kramer entitled Drug Development: http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/439156?mpid=1801.
Here's the concluding paragraph:
"The studies that are done in clinical trials must demonstrate that the drug is safe and effective but nothing more. The idea is to test a potentially commercial product, not to find out scientific truth. Thus, the studies are not designed to gather the most or the best data; they are designed to tell the FDA what they need to know and nothing more. Issues of different pharmaceuticals being more or less effective in different kinds of patients are unable to be determined by the kind of studies that are done for drug trials. While there is much virtue in drug development in that it brings us new pharmaceuticals, it is important to note that these clinical trials are not a substitute for real scientific research done outside of the context of pharmaceutical company drug development. It is only with studies separate and apart from drug development that we will find out information about comparative treatments and the complicated, comorbid, usual patients that are actually seen in practice."
poster:Anyuser
thread:110614
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020731/msgs/114779.html