More transparency called for in UK pharma industry

The UK pharmaceutical industry needs to become more transparent, a former editor of the British Medical Journal has said.

Dr Richard Smith, writing in New Zealand’s drug authority Pharmac’s annual review, said that some regulatory agencies are so close to the drug industry that results presented from clinical trials are often biased.

As a result, Dr Smith said that poor decisions are often made on drug regulation and prescription. He added that a parliamentary committee has already recommended that the industry reveal more about its dealings with the government, medical authorities and the media.

“Guidelines for treating patients are distorted not only because they must be based on biased evidence but also because the organisations and people producing them will often be in hoc to the industry,” Dr Smith wrote.

He warned that the collaboration often meant that doctors ended up over-relying on drug based treatments instead of dietary or other interventions. The problem results in the “‘medicalisation’ of life’s problems, including baldness, shyness, unhappiness, grief, and sexual difficulties”.

The committee has made several recommendations to the government, including the introduction of a register for links between clinicians and the industry and a review of British drug regulation.

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