Science

Avandia Skeptic Alleges Intimidation by Company, FDA Issues Strict Warnings

John B. Buse, incoming president of the American Diabetes Association, says that SmithKline Beecham, developers of the controversial diabetes drug Avandia, subjected him to a campaign of intimidation after he questioned the drug’s cardiovascular safety back in 1999. Buse said company officials considered his actions "scurrilous" and implied that he might be held accountable for […]

Avandia
John B. Buse, incoming president of the American Diabetes Association, says that SmithKline Beecham, developers of the controversial diabetes drug Avandia, subjected him to a campaign of intimidation after he questioned the drug's cardiovascular safety back in 1999.

Buse said company officials considered his actions "scurrilous" and implied that he might be held accountable for a $4 billion drop in the drug firm's stock.

Moncef Slaoui of GlaxoSmithKline, the company's new name after a merger, expressed regret about the episode, attributing it to the "passion" of officials at the time.

The allegations were made at yesterday's Congressional FDA hearings, at which the agency recommended that Avandia and Eli Lilly's Actos, another diabetes drug, be given the strictest possible warning labels.

Doctor Says Avandia Maker Intimidated Him [Washington Post]

F.D.A. Issues Strictest Warning on Diabetes Drugs [New York Times]