Selling human growth hormone as an anti-aging drug is a federal crime. Drug maker Pharmacia allegedly did that for years. Now its new owner, Pfizer, has to clean up the mess.
March 20, 2006 By Jim Edwards
In January of 2000, Pharmacia CEO Fred Hassan received a letter from William Abelove, a medical doctor who specialized in "anti-aging" therapies. At the time, Abelove was writing a book, described in a draft as "a practical, no-nonsense manual for those of us who would like to live to 100 or more." The key to such a miraculous feat was human growth hormone, the draft said: "Growth hormone not only could stop the aging process but it could reverse the aging process as well."
Abelove told Hassan he was seeking a "strategic alliance" with Pharmacia for "the marketing of growth hormone injections" through his business, the Renaissance Longevity Center chain of clinics in Southern Florida. He wrote, "We would like to discuss your role as a supplier to us." The letter was stamped "Received" by Hassan's office on Jan. 14, and in the margin was scribbled, "Pl. follow up/act etc." The handwriting was signed "FH."
On May 1 of that year, Abelove signed a $50,000 contract as a consultant to Pharmacia on the "adult growth hormone market." The company also began selling Genotropin, its growth hormone brand, to Abelove, the doctor confirmed. In a nation obsessed with youth, this kind of deal was a marketer's dream. There was just one problem: it is a federal crime to distribute Genotropin for the purposes described in Abelove's book.
Selling the drug specifically for anti-aging had been banned by a 1990 law, although the statute is so confusing that even seasoned drug marketers are in the dark about what it actually allows and prohibits. Nonetheless, the Abelove contract was not unique. It was one of about a dozen that the Peapack, N.J.-based company signed with businesses and pharmacies which appeared to be promoting fountain-of-youth therapies. Those contracts have potentially far-reaching consequences. They could expose Pharmacia's employees and customers to five years in federal prison - the punishment for dealing illegally in growth hormone, according to the statute and the Food and Drug Administration.
The business stakes could be enormous as well. In October 2005, a rival growth hormone marketer, Serono, pled guilty and paid a $704 million fine for the illegal marketing of a similar drug.
Read the rest of this gripping article here at Brandweek.
2 comments:
The Schering-Plough stock was up 4% on the day this article came out. So much for BrandWeek's credibility! This article was written based on a fundamental mistake. Fred Hassan did not write "act" as stated in the article-he wrote "ack", which is his standard notation to have his mail acknowledged fast. This is well known among his colleagues.
BrandWeek has realized their problem and have quietly retracted this pivitol word. Another reason to be careful about assumptions about Fred's character!
We know Fred. He sends us stuff all the time about honesty and trustworthiness and he is not interested in short-term activities. This guy is wasting his time with what Peter Rost's lawyer has fed him. Rost was the man in charge of growth hormone, Genotropin at Pharmacia. Now he is trying to collect money by accusing his own unit! Pfizer has understood his game and does not want to pay him anything. We should stop lawyers from using journalists to call attention to their own cases.
Thank you for your perspective.
Is this bit of the story still correct:
"On May 1 of that year, Abelove signed a $50,000 contract as a consultant to Pharmacia on the "adult growth hormone market." The company also began selling Genotropin, its growth hormone brand, to Abelove, the doctor confirmed. In a nation obsessed with youth, this kind of deal was a marketer's dream. There was just one problem: it is a federal crime to distribute Genotropin for the purposes described in Abelove's book.
Selling the drug specifically for anti-aging had been banned by a 1990 law, although the statute is so confusing that even seasoned drug marketers are in the dark about what it actually allows and prohibits. Nonetheless, the Abelove contract was not unique. It was one of about a dozen that the Peapack, N.J.-based company signed with businesses and pharmacies which appeared to be promoting fountain-of-youth therapies. Those contracts have potentially far-reaching consequences. They could expose Pharmacia's employees and customers to five years in federal prison - the punishment for dealing illegally in growth hormone, according to the statute and the Food and Drug Administration."
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