NEJM FLEXES ITS MUSCLES IN MERCK LAWSUIT
The New England Medical Journal has intervened in a highly public way to influence lawsuits against the pharmaceutical company Merck over Vioxx’s links with heart attacks and strokes. Its executive editor, Dr Gregory Curfman has accused Merck of deleting data and underreporting the number of heart attacks in a crucial study published in the NEJM four years ago. "In criticising Merck and the study’s authors at a time when the company’s credibility is at issue in lawsuits, the journal is taking an extraordinary step," commented the New York Times. "The publication is well respected and widely read by doctors and scientists, with a circulation of almost 200,000."
Merck faces more than 6,000 lawsuits brought by or on behalf of people who suffered heart attacks and strokes after taking Vioxx. Only two have been decided, the first against Merck and the second in its favour. The jury is weighing up the evidence in a third case.
- How long can you put off seeing the doctor because of lockdowns? - December 3, 2021
- House of Lords debates assisted suicide—again - October 28, 2021
- Spanish government tries to restrict conscientious objection - October 28, 2021
More Stories
Last Australian state finally launches ‘assisted dying’
As of November 28, eligible people in New South Wales can request “voluntary assisted dying”. NSW was the last Australian...
Two opposing conferences on population this weekend: one proudly pro-natalist, one dismally pro-extinction
Declining rates of fertility around the globe are slowly creeping into headlines and the conference circuit. This weekend, there will...
Do women suffer from depression after their abortions?
“It’s important for folks to know that abortion does not cause mental health problems,” Debra Mollen, of Texas Woman’s University,...
A sperm donor’s can of worms
Assuming that letters to Slate’s agony aunt are 100% the real deal is a bit dangerous. A failed novelist in...
Al-Jazeera investigates euthanasia in Canada
Most people are completely ignorant of how radical Canada's right-to-die legislation has become. This documentary from Al-Jazeera exposes the incredible...
Do gender-questioning kids need psychotherapy rather than hormones?
If you consult the “Gender Affirming Hormone Therapy” page of the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, you will discover that...