Ben Goldacre now fights a bigger and powerful adversary in his new book Bad Pharma: How drug companies mislead doctors and harm patients ; interview here:
What exactly is the problem?
Drugs are tested in poorly designed studies, which are then selectively reported, with unflattering data hidden. This biased evidence is then communicated to doctors in a chaotic and distorted system by marketing departments and Chinese whispers. I have an almost grudging respect for the clever ways in which data can be distorted, but as a result of this distortion patients suffer and die unnecessarily.
Drugs are tested in poorly designed studies, which are then selectively reported, with unflattering data hidden. This biased evidence is then communicated to doctors in a chaotic and distorted system by marketing departments and Chinese whispers. I have an almost grudging respect for the clever ways in which data can be distorted, but as a result of this distortion patients suffer and die unnecessarily.
It's worth being clear that those in the industry aren't the
only people at fault. Many senior academics, doctors, regulators and patients'
associations have failed to protect patients' interests. I think this could be
like the scandals of the expense claims of British members of parliament, or
phone-hacking by journalists: things that feel normal within these communities
may suddenly land some people in jail.
Are you hoping that the book will get people up in arms about
this issue?
I think this is a cause for national scandal, but it's a sophisticated national scandal. It's not "oh my god, these people are deliberately killing babies". I don't imagine that any one of the people I describe in the book - who have made decisions that resulted in avoidable suffering or death - could willingly drown a kitten or suffocate an old lady. But when doctors give a treatment that they have been misled into believing is the most effective, they are inflicting avoidable suffering and harm on their patients.
I think this is a cause for national scandal, but it's a sophisticated national scandal. It's not "oh my god, these people are deliberately killing babies". I don't imagine that any one of the people I describe in the book - who have made decisions that resulted in avoidable suffering or death - could willingly drown a kitten or suffocate an old lady. But when doctors give a treatment that they have been misled into believing is the most effective, they are inflicting avoidable suffering and harm on their patients.
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