Monday, May 18, 2009

Fighting for unapproved drugs

The New York Times had a compelling article yesterday about one family's fight to access a new drug to treat ALS that has not been approved by the FDA. The story is gut-wrenching. It's hard not to feel for the patients, who are fighting for any shred of hope of treatment. But at the same time, it's hard not to see the side of the FDA, who doesn't want to release harmful drugs or promote false hope.

There is no easy or final answer to this dilemma. It will likely continue as long as there are new drugs in development and patients and their families are looking for any hope for treatment.

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