Comments on: Drug trials /robert/2006/03/16/73/ Because pictures say more than words. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 10:43:38 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=1.5.1.3 by: Bill /robert/2006/03/16/73/#comment-71 Tue, 21 Mar 2006 07:53:31 +0000 /robert/2006/03/16/73/#comment-71 On the radio the other day they were suggesting that a similar drug had been trialed recently in the US and was deemed unsafe for human use. I haven't checked these reports or looked into any details, but it could be worth looking into. There is always the chance that the procedures in place for checks are not adequate. No matter how well you try and anticipate all circumstances, there is always the unexpected. Over time the procedures and checks that run up to a human trial will need to be reviewed and modified. I don't know if this is the worst case outcome or just an early warning that as a society we place too much trust in "procedure". Given that the reaction was almost instant you might have thought they would stagger the drug administration so that there were several hours between each person being given the drug. I think the biggest questions surrounds the practice of paying people to take part in trials. New drugs need to be tested, there is no doubt about this. But offering financial incentives to take part in trials may not be the right thing to do. I think it is still possible to take part in multiple trials. Maybe GPs should be involved in the whole trials process to act as an independent moderator to ensure the patients are represented medically. On the radio the other day they were suggesting that a similar drug had been trialed recently in the US and was deemed unsafe for human use. I haven’t checked these reports or looked into any details, but it could be worth looking into.

There is always the chance that the procedures in place for checks are not adequate. No matter how well you try and anticipate all circumstances, there is always the unexpected. Over time the procedures and checks that run up to a human trial will need to be reviewed and modified. I don’t know if this is the worst case outcome or just an early warning that as a society we place too much trust in “procedure”.

Given that the reaction was almost instant you might have thought they would stagger the drug administration so that there were several hours between each person being given the drug.

I think the biggest questions surrounds the practice of paying people to take part in trials. New drugs need to be tested, there is no doubt about this. But offering financial incentives to take part in trials may not be the right thing to do. I think it is still possible to take part in multiple trials. Maybe GPs should be involved in the whole trials process to act as an independent moderator to ensure the patients are represented medically.

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