When the president of a cancer-fighting foundation implored government advisers to back the drug Tarceva as a treatment for pancreatic cancer, she didn't tell them its Long Island manufacturer had given thousands of dollars to her group.
Instead, Carolyn Aldige of the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation told a Food and Drug Administration advisory committee she had no financial ties to OSI Pharmaceuticals, the Melville company that makes Tarceva.
But Aldige now says her foundation had received funding from OSI and its marketing partner for Tarceva, Genentech.Every year, drug companies give millions of dollars to various organizations, some of which voice public support for their products. That practice adds another layer to a stack of concerns about potential conflicts posed by the FDA drug approval process.
Aldige testified at a Sept. 13, 2005, FDA meeting in Bethesda, Md., on Tarceva's behalf; the FDA panel also considered Abbott Laboratories' prostate cancer drug Xinlay that day.
"I do want to mention I have absolutely no financial connection with either of the sponsors, either of the companies that sponsor these drugs, and I paid my own way to be here, even though the gas was pretty expensive," Aldige told the FDA panel, according to a transcript.
But when Newsday questioned Aldige, she said OSI began contributing to her Alexandria, Va., foundation four years ago. She said she didn't think a request from the panel chairwoman that speakers reveal financial ties to drug companies applied to OSI's contributions.
Aldige said OSI has given her foundation "$35,000 to $75,000 each year" in educational grants and contributions. The foundation's 2006 annual report states it received at least $75,000 in "lifetime" contributions from OSI.
More at Newsday
Instead, Carolyn Aldige of the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation told a Food and Drug Administration advisory committee she had no financial ties to OSI Pharmaceuticals, the Melville company that makes Tarceva.
But Aldige now says her foundation had received funding from OSI and its marketing partner for Tarceva, Genentech.Every year, drug companies give millions of dollars to various organizations, some of which voice public support for their products. That practice adds another layer to a stack of concerns about potential conflicts posed by the FDA drug approval process.
Aldige testified at a Sept. 13, 2005, FDA meeting in Bethesda, Md., on Tarceva's behalf; the FDA panel also considered Abbott Laboratories' prostate cancer drug Xinlay that day.
"I do want to mention I have absolutely no financial connection with either of the sponsors, either of the companies that sponsor these drugs, and I paid my own way to be here, even though the gas was pretty expensive," Aldige told the FDA panel, according to a transcript.
But when Newsday questioned Aldige, she said OSI began contributing to her Alexandria, Va., foundation four years ago. She said she didn't think a request from the panel chairwoman that speakers reveal financial ties to drug companies applied to OSI's contributions.
Aldige said OSI has given her foundation "$35,000 to $75,000 each year" in educational grants and contributions. The foundation's 2006 annual report states it received at least $75,000 in "lifetime" contributions from OSI.
More at Newsday
No comments:
Post a Comment