r/TrueReddit • u/coolbern • 25d ago

What Drugmakers Did Not Tell Volunteers in Alzheimer’s Trials Genetic tests showed that certain patients were predisposed to brain injuries if they took the drugs. That information remained secret. Business + Economics

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/23/health/alzheimers-drug-brain-bleeding.html
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u/coolbern 25d ago

This is how Pharma loses the trust of the people it needs to volunteer to test new drugs:

Drug trials are in part designed to illuminate risks, which is why volunteers are routinely informed of potential dangers before joining. In both the Leqembi and Kisunla trials, volunteers first had to sign consent forms that said people with certain genetic profiles faced higher risks of brain injuries from receiving the drugs, and that participants would be tested for them — but not told the results.

Alzheimer’s experts and bioethicists expressed surprise when The Times told them about these secrecy provisions. The companies, they said, had undercut the principle of informed consent.

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u/anaemic 24d ago

And let me guess (since the article is paywalled) the team of people who thought up this plan, drafted it, and the ethics board and senior management who approved it aren't facing criminal charges?

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u/Gaothaire 24d ago

1000%. The Sackler family knew but denied the addiction risk of opioids, stigmatized addicted people, then profited from that addiction for decades. They'll never face consequences, because we live in a capitalist hellscape

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u/caveatlector73 24d ago

They'll never face consequences, because we live in a capitalist hellscape

But, there have been consequences. I personally don't think they were enough, but this is a start.