A study in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) just found that drug research, even clinical trials that are sponsored by the federal government, is regularly suppressed. Researchers found that less than 50% of all NIH-funded research studies were published within two and a half years of the completion of the study. Incredibly, 33% of these studies were still not published after 4 years. The reason appears to be that the pharmaceutical companies did not like the data.
One example given in the study was the case with Avandia, a drug that was actually approved by the FDA. It was found in 2007 that it caused an increase in heart attacks and cardiovascular disease related deaths. GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), the drug manufacturer, knew about the increased hazards associated with Avandia before the drug was even approved by FDA! continue reading…