Interesting piece on ethics of drug trials, this time for malignant melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer we see in our dermatology practice. The New York Times (9/18, A1, Harmon) reports, "Controlled trials have for decades been considered essential for proving a drug's value before it can go to market," but the "continuing trial of the melanoma drug, PLX4032, has ignited an anguished debate among oncologists." For their part, "defenders of controlled trials say they are crucial in determining whether a drug really does extend life more than competing treatments." Others , however, "argue that the new science behind the drugs has eclipsed the old rules -- and ethics -- of testing them." In fact, "in some cases, drugs under development, PLX4032 among them, may be so much more effective than their predecessors that putting half the potential beneficiaries into a control group, and delaying access to the drug to thousands of other patients, causes needless suffering."
Elizabeth Anderson, MD
Staff Dermatologist, Elizabeth Anderson Dermatology
Knoxville, TN
www.elizabethandersondermatology.com
