Just finished half listening and then really listening once I started paying attention to the two authors of this upcoming article in Vanity Fair talking on WNYC in New York City.  Sounds like something that would be very worthwhile to read -- including the history of when drug advertising was unleashed in the US and the much more recent rapid rise in drug testing that is being conducted in developing areas of the world with very little oversight. 

I keep thinking of Sabu George -- the annoyingly persistent and annoying watch dog of international nutrition when I was at both Johns Hopkins and Cornell.  He never ever let up on ethical issues -- sometimes to the point of absurdity (once saying he deserved more financial aid because of what the CIA did in India).  Yet, he often did have a point --- nudging all of us about the Nestle Nutrition Grant and how none of us should apply for funding from that source.  He's been on public radio now that he's back in India and I can't help but thinking he is probably still trying to point out the dangers of unregulated human research trials in India.  

In thinking about this, I also can't help but remember a posting from Valerie McClain about the patent application for developing products from women who are exposed to certain type of bacteria from their milk.  I read the patent application and it was really quite troubling from a human ethics review perspective.  None of the issues I would have wanted to be addressed were mentioned in the application and there seemed to be all sorts of potential for abuse.  One of the areas mentioned in the show were not just the two biggest and growing areas of unfettered research of China and India, but also Southern Africa.

I didn't listen to the whole segment, but when I get a chance I will.

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/2010/dec/15/deadly-medicine-overseas-drug-testing/

Best, Susan Burger, MHS, PhD, IBCLC

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