Neuroscience
Today's New York Times offers a good read about a fascinating aspect of contemporary pharmacology and medical marketing: the tension between hype and help - or - in the words of the journalist, "Is it a drug in search of a disease, or simply an affliction in need of better publicity?"
Marketing a Disease, and Also a Drug to Treat It
By ANDREW POLLACK
The New York Times
Published: May 9, 2005
Is it a drug in search of a disease, or simply an affliction in need of better publicity?
One of the afflicted is Peter Pagan. After suffering a severe brain injury in a fall, he would burst into tears at the slightest provocation, even when he was not feeling sad.
"The physical therapist would say, 'You're doing well' and he would just start crying," said his wife, Julie. "He cried, I would say, 40 or 50 times a day. It was awful. I just didn't know what to do."
But Mr. Pagan, 73, a retired engineer from La Palma, Calif., who still has trouble speaking, has been keeping his tears in check, his wife said, since he started taking an experimental drug developed by Avanir Pharmaceuticals of San Diego.
Avanir hopes that the drug, Neurodex, will win federal approval by the end of this year as a treatment for the uncontrollable laughing or crying that can be caused by various neurological diseases or injuries. As one doctor described the odd syndrome in a 1989 article, "Pathologic laughter is devoid of any inner sense of joy and pathologic weeping of any feeling of inner sorrow."
[ ... Read the full article ... ]
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Pathological laughter or crying is a fascinating manifestation of certain types of brain damage or disease. It is a reflection more of a disorder in emotional expression than in any way reflective of feelings per se and, by extension, mood.
- Alzheimer Disease: Dimebon Results, Part Ii
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From The New York Times, concerning glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF):Judge Rejects Patients' Suit to Get Test Drug By ANDREW POLLACK The New York Times Published: June 8, 2005 A federal judge has denied a request by two people...
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Neuroscience
Business World: Avanir, Neurodex (AVP 923), and Marketing - The Tension 'tween Hype and Help
Today's New York Times offers a good read about a fascinating aspect of contemporary pharmacology and medical marketing: the tension between hype and help - or - in the words of the journalist, "Is it a drug in search of a disease, or simply an affliction in need of better publicity?"
Marketing a Disease, and Also a Drug to Treat It
By ANDREW POLLACK
The New York Times
Published: May 9, 2005
Is it a drug in search of a disease, or simply an affliction in need of better publicity?
One of the afflicted is Peter Pagan. After suffering a severe brain injury in a fall, he would burst into tears at the slightest provocation, even when he was not feeling sad.
"The physical therapist would say, 'You're doing well' and he would just start crying," said his wife, Julie. "He cried, I would say, 40 or 50 times a day. It was awful. I just didn't know what to do."
But Mr. Pagan, 73, a retired engineer from La Palma, Calif., who still has trouble speaking, has been keeping his tears in check, his wife said, since he started taking an experimental drug developed by Avanir Pharmaceuticals of San Diego.
Avanir hopes that the drug, Neurodex, will win federal approval by the end of this year as a treatment for the uncontrollable laughing or crying that can be caused by various neurological diseases or injuries. As one doctor described the odd syndrome in a 1989 article, "Pathologic laughter is devoid of any inner sense of joy and pathologic weeping of any feeling of inner sorrow."
[ ... Read the full article ... ]
Pathological laughter or crying is a fascinating manifestation of certain types of brain damage or disease. It is a reflection more of a disorder in emotional expression than in any way reflective of feelings per se and, by extension, mood.
- Alzheimer Disease: Dimebon Results, Part Ii
From The New York Times: Hopes for Alzheimer’s Drug Are Dashed By ANDREW POLLACK Published: March 4, 2010 "The drug, called Dimebon, failed in its first late-stage clinical trial, dealing a blow to patients with Alzheimer’s and the companies developing...
- Business World: Biogen Idec, Elan, Tysabri (natalizumab), And Multiple Sclerosis
From Bloomberg via the New York Times:Move to Reinstate Multiple Sclerosis Drug Published: September 21, 2005 By Bloomberg News Biogen Idec Inc. and the Elan Corporation said yesterday that they would seek federal regulatory approval to resume sales...
- Legal World: Amgen, Gdnf Clinical Trial, And Parkinson Disease
From The New York Times, concerning glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF):Judge Rejects Patients' Suit to Get Test Drug By ANDREW POLLACK The New York Times Published: June 8, 2005 A federal judge has denied a request by two people...
- More M.s. Drug Woes: Avonex And 683699
Biogen and F.D.A. Issue Drug Warning By ANDREW POLLACK The New York Times Published: March 17, 2005 Biogen Idec's multiple sclerosis drug Avonex might cause severe liver damage in rare cases, the company and the Food and Drug Administration said...
- Reminyl (galantamine Hydrobromide) (continued)
Safety Concerns Reported on J.& J. Alzheimer's Drug By ANDREW POLLACK New York Times Published: January 22, 2005 Regulators are reviewing the safety of the Alzheimer's disease drug Reminyl after data from two clinical trials indicated...