UK Drug Trial Victim May Lose His Fingers, Toes

[Guest guest]

I hope that people at least get paid well for taking part in these trials.

Though I can understand people feeling that these days, the untested drugs

are not a whole lot more dangerous then ingesting 'tested' ones. The drug

companies are evidently not passing info on the dangers anyhow & the FDA (etc)

is

still approving the drugs.

blessings

Shan

UK Drug Trial Victim May Lose His Fingers, Toes

 

http://www.mercola.com/2006/may/6/uk_drug_trial_victim_may_lose_his_fingers_toes\

..htm

 

Ryan Wilson, who fell into a coma during a clinical drug trial in March, may

lose parts of his fingers and toes. Wilson was the most seriously ill of the

six men who suffered extensive swelling in their heads and bodies after being

injected with TGN1412 to treat his rheumatoid arthritis.

 

Could Fall Off

 

Wilson could need to stay in the hospital six more months while his condition

is monitored. His hands and feet have blackened, and parts of his fingers and

toes have died and are likely to require amputation or fall off.

 

Intended to Treat Arthritis, Leukemia, MS

 

TGN1412 was created by German pharmaceutical company TeGenero, and the trials

were administered by the medical research company Parexel. TGN1412 was

intended to treat rheumatoid arthritis, leukemia and multiple sclerosis. Wilson

participated in the paying trial to fund driving lessons and a trip.

 

Unconscious for Three Weeks

 

He suffered from heart, liver and kidney failure, as well as pneumonia and

septicemia. He remained unconscious for nearly three weeks. The other five

participants have all been released from hospital care.

 

 

BBC News April 16, 2006

 

 

Dr. Mercola's Comment:

 

 

The news is now far worse than anyone ever expected for the sole patient

still hospitalized after a UK drug trial gone horribly awry. At the very least,

he

will lose the tips of his toes, and it could be much more severe than that.

 

As of now, Wilson and his doctors are in an uncomfortable holding pattern,

waiting for his body to begin healing on its own. I wish I could tell you

Wilson's experience was an uncommon one, but it isn't. The 10,000 Vioxx lawsuits

clogging up American courts certainly speak volumes on that score.

 

The sad tragedy here is that this is just completely unnecessary. I have

treated over 3,000 people with rheumatoid arthritis over the last 25 years with

an

85 percent success rate using very basic applications from my Total Health

Program. The specifics of my program are outlined in the notes from a

presentation I gave in 1995 to a large alternative medical group.

 

It has been my experience that nearly all rheumatoid arthritis patients are

vitamin D deficient and have some previous emotional trigger that stimulates a

dramatic decline in the functioning of their immune system. Typically, energy

psychology techniques are helpful to restore the balance. Heavy metals like

mercury and root canals are also frequent causal factors.

 

I can tell you that it is VERY unusual where we have to resort to immune- and

health-damaging drugs like prednisone, methotrexate, tumor necrosis factor

and interferons or drugs like the one used in the report above. In my book

ignorance should not be an excuse for using these drugs.

 

This is not the first time disaster has struck during a drug trial, and it

won't be the last, either. In fact, they are likely to happen more and more

frequently; in the United States, at least, laws have even been changed so that

" fast tracking " drugs -- rushing them through the testing process -- is easier,

making these deadly mistakes all the more likely.

 

I've previously warned you about the " fast track " status of, for example,

experimental cancer drugs, quickly pushed to market, even though none of them

helped patients live any longer. Can we trust the FDA and their partners -- the

multi-national drug companies -- to make the right call on new drugs, much less

safety, when the existing process is already so fatally flawed?

 

Just ask the families of patients who died during a recent drug trial for

Aricept. And clearly, the situation is much the same throughout most of the

world

right now, thanks to those same multi-national drug companies -- just ask

Ryan Wilson.

 

The most frustrating part of all this is that drugs are not the answer to

nearly any health problem in the first place. They are convenient short-term

fixes for which many of us are grateful. The problem results when we rely on

them

to solve our health complaints rather than addressing the underlying

foundational cause.

 

If you suffer from illnesses, such as the kind of chronic inflammation

problems TGN1412 was supposed to treat, avoid useless and dangerous drugs as

much as

possible. Instead, do what is necessary to change your health for the better,

and look for safe alternatives for symptom relief while your body goes

through the healing process.

 

 

Related Articles:

 

> Johns Hopkins Halts ALL Medical Volunteer Trials -- What Can We Learn From

> This Tragedy?

>

> Research and Drugs How Investigators are Influenced

>

> The Drug Companies Strike Back

>

>