There’s been a controversy in both the scientific literature and the popular press recently about whether Merck’s “ADVANTAGE” trial of Vioxx was a “seeding” trial conducted for marketing purposes.
That subject has been too hot for us to touch, in part because Bexis’ firm is involved in the Vioxx litigation, so he couldn’t speak on this subject.
But John Calfee, a Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, could. Calfee explains in this recent AEI “On The Issues” piece why clinical trials benefit both physicians and patients, no matter what the intent of those who perform the studies.