Medicine tragedies repeated ........... from Flynn MP

[Guest guest]

Anti-depressants repeat tranquillisers' tragedy

http://www.paulflynnmp.co.uk/newsdetail.jsp?id=425

Flynn (Newport, West) said tomorrow's ( 6th December)statements

by NICE and the MHRA will confirm that the Seroxat scandal is one of

gigantic proportions, which affects millions of people. Over-

prescribing and mis-prescribing of this antidepressant is on a scale

equalled only by the over-prescription of tranquillisers 40 years

ago.

The pharmaceutical industry uses spin, marketing zeal and the

propaganda to maximize profits. They have subverted charities and

patients' group to create a demand for happy bills that doctors

cannot resist. GlaxoKline, the manufacturer of Seroxat, has

been exposed as valuing profits above the health of its customers.

Where there should have been scientific objectivity there has been

voodoo medicine; patients who have sought care have had their trust

abused. Seroxat has turned mild stress in to suicidal despair. In

many cases a passing anxiety has become a lifelong addiction,

leading to self-harm, suicide and even murder Those who have long

questioned the safety and efficacy of Seroxat were ridiculed and

undermined by the pharmaceutical industry.

They have propagated the myth that life is a state of perpetual

euphoria. All moments of discomfort, pain, boredom, grief or anxiety

should be treated as illnesses requiring drugs. GSK has said

antidepressants should be taken by half the female population of the

United Kingdom and a third of the male population; it wants to see

25 million people on antidepressant drugs.

The charity MIND has courageously exposed the tragedies of over-

prescribing. They take no money from pharmas. The Depression

Alliance has called for a further 9 million people to be treated for

depression. More than 80% of DA's funding comes from pharmas. Not

only did they not support MIND's campaign, they tried to undermine

it by attacking Panorama's programmes that exposed the perils of

Seroxat.

Earlier this year, this practice was exposed when an internal

document from GlaxoKline, revealed that data demonstrating the

ineffectiveness of Seroxat in treating depression in children was

not passed to regulators because it would undermine the profile of

the drug. The study, an analysis of published and unpublished data

of trials of SSRIs in treating children with depression, reveals a

staggering manipulation of data. Unpublished trials were found to

contain data which show the drugs to be either ineffective or even

dangerous. Urgent reform to force the publication of all trials is

needed. The full report `Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in

childhood depression: systematic review of published versus

unpublished data' by Craig J Whittington, Tim Kendall, Fonagy,

Cottrell, Cotgrove, Ellen Boddington can be found at

www.thelancet.com.

Early day Motions in the name of PF:-

MEDICINES OUT OF CONTROL 17.03.04 Flynn/ That this House hails

the publication of the book 'Medicines Out of Control' as a

remarkable account of history repeating itself over the last 150

years in the promotion of anti-depression drugs; congratulates Mr

Medawar and Anita Hardon for revealing mountainous evidence

of incompetence and inaction by regulatory authorities and profit-

driven pharmaceutical giants in advocating the use of cocaine,

bromides, barbiturates, benzodiazepines and anti-depressants as safe

drugs until use by millions of patients have proved them to be

addictive, dangerous and of little or no utility; and regrets that

more than six million people in Britain and 10 million children in

the USA are currently using anti-depressants in spite of mounting

evidence that they have been vastly over-prescribed for the mild

depression that is an inevitable part of the human experience. That

this House expresses concern at the tragic deaths associated with

the anti-depressant drug Seroxat and the news that GlaxoKline

suppressed news of two 1998 studies that demonstrated that the drug

was no more effective than placebos; notes with alarm the Department

of Health's view that Seroxat can make the symptoms of depression

more severe and the decision of a court that Seroxat was responsible

for a change in the behaviour of a man who took his own life and

that of his family; and calls for a full investigation of the

conduct of GlaxoKline who appear to have put their private

greed before public safety.

That this House congratulates New York State Attorney General Eliot

Spitzer on his decision to sue the pharmaceutical company

GlaxoKline for alleged repeated and persistent fraud by

suppressing the results of studies that showed the anti-depressant

Seroxat is no more effective, or less effective, than a placebo in

treating depression in young people and that the incidence of

suicidal tendencies doubled among users in three of the trials;

notes in one trial 6.5 per cent. of the sample taking Seroxat

developed suicidal tendencies compared to 1.1 per cent. in the

placebo group; is shocked to learn that the results were suppressed

because GlaxoKline decided that admitting that the drug did not

work in children would be commercially unacceptable... as this would

undermine the profile of Seroxat; and calls for early action here to

conclude the delayed Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory

Agency investigation into Seroxat. Line 4, after 'future',

insert 'Further notes that Depression Alliance is funded by

Pharmaceutical Companies many of which manufacture the controversial

Selective Seratonin Uptake Inhibitors; regrets the silence of the

Depression Alliance in the recent exposure of the addictivity, fatal

adverse effects and lack of utility of SSRIs; commends MIND for

refusing all support from drug companies and congratulates them for

leading the campaign against the dangers of Seroxat and their clear

policy of differentiating between severe depression and other forms

of depression that are an inevitable part of human experience.

[Guest guest]

Anti-depressants repeat tranquillisers' tragedy

http://www.paulflynnmp.co.uk/newsdetail.jsp?id=425

Flynn (Newport, West) said tomorrow's ( 6th December)statements

by NICE and the MHRA will confirm that the Seroxat scandal is one of

gigantic proportions, which affects millions of people. Over-

prescribing and mis-prescribing of this antidepressant is on a scale

equalled only by the over-prescription of tranquillisers 40 years

ago.

The pharmaceutical industry uses spin, marketing zeal and the

propaganda to maximize profits. They have subverted charities and

patients' group to create a demand for happy bills that doctors

cannot resist. GlaxoKline, the manufacturer of Seroxat, has

been exposed as valuing profits above the health of its customers.

Where there should have been scientific objectivity there has been

voodoo medicine; patients who have sought care have had their trust

abused. Seroxat has turned mild stress in to suicidal despair. In

many cases a passing anxiety has become a lifelong addiction,

leading to self-harm, suicide and even murder Those who have long

questioned the safety and efficacy of Seroxat were ridiculed and

undermined by the pharmaceutical industry.

They have propagated the myth that life is a state of perpetual

euphoria. All moments of discomfort, pain, boredom, grief or anxiety

should be treated as illnesses requiring drugs. GSK has said

antidepressants should be taken by half the female population of the

United Kingdom and a third of the male population; it wants to see

25 million people on antidepressant drugs.

The charity MIND has courageously exposed the tragedies of over-

prescribing. They take no money from pharmas. The Depression

Alliance has called for a further 9 million people to be treated for

depression. More than 80% of DA's funding comes from pharmas. Not

only did they not support MIND's campaign, they tried to undermine

it by attacking Panorama's programmes that exposed the perils of

Seroxat.

Earlier this year, this practice was exposed when an internal

document from GlaxoKline, revealed that data demonstrating the

ineffectiveness of Seroxat in treating depression in children was

not passed to regulators because it would undermine the profile of

the drug. The study, an analysis of published and unpublished data

of trials of SSRIs in treating children with depression, reveals a

staggering manipulation of data. Unpublished trials were found to

contain data which show the drugs to be either ineffective or even

dangerous. Urgent reform to force the publication of all trials is

needed. The full report `Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in

childhood depression: systematic review of published versus

unpublished data' by Craig J Whittington, Tim Kendall, Fonagy,

Cottrell, Cotgrove, Ellen Boddington can be found at

www.thelancet.com.

Early day Motions in the name of PF:-

MEDICINES OUT OF CONTROL 17.03.04 Flynn/ That this House hails

the publication of the book 'Medicines Out of Control' as a

remarkable account of history repeating itself over the last 150

years in the promotion of anti-depression drugs; congratulates Mr

Medawar and Anita Hardon for revealing mountainous evidence

of incompetence and inaction by regulatory authorities and profit-

driven pharmaceutical giants in advocating the use of cocaine,

bromides, barbiturates, benzodiazepines and anti-depressants as safe

drugs until use by millions of patients have proved them to be

addictive, dangerous and of little or no utility; and regrets that

more than six million people in Britain and 10 million children in

the USA are currently using anti-depressants in spite of mounting

evidence that they have been vastly over-prescribed for the mild

depression that is an inevitable part of the human experience. That

this House expresses concern at the tragic deaths associated with

the anti-depressant drug Seroxat and the news that GlaxoKline

suppressed news of two 1998 studies that demonstrated that the drug

was no more effective than placebos; notes with alarm the Department

of Health's view that Seroxat can make the symptoms of depression

more severe and the decision of a court that Seroxat was responsible

for a change in the behaviour of a man who took his own life and

that of his family; and calls for a full investigation of the

conduct of GlaxoKline who appear to have put their private

greed before public safety.

That this House congratulates New York State Attorney General Eliot

Spitzer on his decision to sue the pharmaceutical company

GlaxoKline for alleged repeated and persistent fraud by

suppressing the results of studies that showed the anti-depressant

Seroxat is no more effective, or less effective, than a placebo in

treating depression in young people and that the incidence of

suicidal tendencies doubled among users in three of the trials;

notes in one trial 6.5 per cent. of the sample taking Seroxat

developed suicidal tendencies compared to 1.1 per cent. in the

placebo group; is shocked to learn that the results were suppressed

because GlaxoKline decided that admitting that the drug did not

work in children would be commercially unacceptable... as this would

undermine the profile of Seroxat; and calls for early action here to

conclude the delayed Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory

Agency investigation into Seroxat. Line 4, after 'future',

insert 'Further notes that Depression Alliance is funded by

Pharmaceutical Companies many of which manufacture the controversial

Selective Seratonin Uptake Inhibitors; regrets the silence of the

Depression Alliance in the recent exposure of the addictivity, fatal

adverse effects and lack of utility of SSRIs; commends MIND for

refusing all support from drug companies and congratulates them for

leading the campaign against the dangers of Seroxat and their clear

policy of differentiating between severe depression and other forms

of depression that are an inevitable part of human experience.

[Guest guest]

Anti-depressants repeat tranquillisers' tragedy

http://www.paulflynnmp.co.uk/newsdetail.jsp?id=425

Flynn (Newport, West) said tomorrow's ( 6th December)statements

by NICE and the MHRA will confirm that the Seroxat scandal is one of

gigantic proportions, which affects millions of people. Over-

prescribing and mis-prescribing of this antidepressant is on a scale

equalled only by the over-prescription of tranquillisers 40 years

ago.

The pharmaceutical industry uses spin, marketing zeal and the

propaganda to maximize profits. They have subverted charities and

patients' group to create a demand for happy bills that doctors

cannot resist. GlaxoKline, the manufacturer of Seroxat, has

been exposed as valuing profits above the health of its customers.

Where there should have been scientific objectivity there has been

voodoo medicine; patients who have sought care have had their trust

abused. Seroxat has turned mild stress in to suicidal despair. In

many cases a passing anxiety has become a lifelong addiction,

leading to self-harm, suicide and even murder Those who have long

questioned the safety and efficacy of Seroxat were ridiculed and

undermined by the pharmaceutical industry.

They have propagated the myth that life is a state of perpetual

euphoria. All moments of discomfort, pain, boredom, grief or anxiety

should be treated as illnesses requiring drugs. GSK has said

antidepressants should be taken by half the female population of the

United Kingdom and a third of the male population; it wants to see

25 million people on antidepressant drugs.

The charity MIND has courageously exposed the tragedies of over-

prescribing. They take no money from pharmas. The Depression

Alliance has called for a further 9 million people to be treated for

depression. More than 80% of DA's funding comes from pharmas. Not

only did they not support MIND's campaign, they tried to undermine

it by attacking Panorama's programmes that exposed the perils of

Seroxat.

Earlier this year, this practice was exposed when an internal

document from GlaxoKline, revealed that data demonstrating the

ineffectiveness of Seroxat in treating depression in children was

not passed to regulators because it would undermine the profile of

the drug. The study, an analysis of published and unpublished data

of trials of SSRIs in treating children with depression, reveals a

staggering manipulation of data. Unpublished trials were found to

contain data which show the drugs to be either ineffective or even

dangerous. Urgent reform to force the publication of all trials is

needed. The full report `Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in

childhood depression: systematic review of published versus

unpublished data' by Craig J Whittington, Tim Kendall, Fonagy,

Cottrell, Cotgrove, Ellen Boddington can be found at

www.thelancet.com.

Early day Motions in the name of PF:-

MEDICINES OUT OF CONTROL 17.03.04 Flynn/ That this House hails

the publication of the book 'Medicines Out of Control' as a

remarkable account of history repeating itself over the last 150

years in the promotion of anti-depression drugs; congratulates Mr

Medawar and Anita Hardon for revealing mountainous evidence

of incompetence and inaction by regulatory authorities and profit-

driven pharmaceutical giants in advocating the use of cocaine,

bromides, barbiturates, benzodiazepines and anti-depressants as safe

drugs until use by millions of patients have proved them to be

addictive, dangerous and of little or no utility; and regrets that

more than six million people in Britain and 10 million children in

the USA are currently using anti-depressants in spite of mounting

evidence that they have been vastly over-prescribed for the mild

depression that is an inevitable part of the human experience. That

this House expresses concern at the tragic deaths associated with

the anti-depressant drug Seroxat and the news that GlaxoKline

suppressed news of two 1998 studies that demonstrated that the drug

was no more effective than placebos; notes with alarm the Department

of Health's view that Seroxat can make the symptoms of depression

more severe and the decision of a court that Seroxat was responsible

for a change in the behaviour of a man who took his own life and

that of his family; and calls for a full investigation of the

conduct of GlaxoKline who appear to have put their private

greed before public safety.

That this House congratulates New York State Attorney General Eliot

Spitzer on his decision to sue the pharmaceutical company

GlaxoKline for alleged repeated and persistent fraud by

suppressing the results of studies that showed the anti-depressant

Seroxat is no more effective, or less effective, than a placebo in

treating depression in young people and that the incidence of

suicidal tendencies doubled among users in three of the trials;

notes in one trial 6.5 per cent. of the sample taking Seroxat

developed suicidal tendencies compared to 1.1 per cent. in the

placebo group; is shocked to learn that the results were suppressed

because GlaxoKline decided that admitting that the drug did not

work in children would be commercially unacceptable... as this would

undermine the profile of Seroxat; and calls for early action here to

conclude the delayed Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory

Agency investigation into Seroxat. Line 4, after 'future',

insert 'Further notes that Depression Alliance is funded by

Pharmaceutical Companies many of which manufacture the controversial

Selective Seratonin Uptake Inhibitors; regrets the silence of the

Depression Alliance in the recent exposure of the addictivity, fatal

adverse effects and lack of utility of SSRIs; commends MIND for

refusing all support from drug companies and congratulates them for

leading the campaign against the dangers of Seroxat and their clear

policy of differentiating between severe depression and other forms

of depression that are an inevitable part of human experience.

[Guest guest]

Anti-depressants repeat tranquillisers' tragedy

http://www.paulflynnmp.co.uk/newsdetail.jsp?id=425

Flynn (Newport, West) said tomorrow's ( 6th December)statements

by NICE and the MHRA will confirm that the Seroxat scandal is one of

gigantic proportions, which affects millions of people. Over-

prescribing and mis-prescribing of this antidepressant is on a scale

equalled only by the over-prescription of tranquillisers 40 years

ago.

The pharmaceutical industry uses spin, marketing zeal and the

propaganda to maximize profits. They have subverted charities and

patients' group to create a demand for happy bills that doctors

cannot resist. GlaxoKline, the manufacturer of Seroxat, has

been exposed as valuing profits above the health of its customers.

Where there should have been scientific objectivity there has been

voodoo medicine; patients who have sought care have had their trust

abused. Seroxat has turned mild stress in to suicidal despair. In

many cases a passing anxiety has become a lifelong addiction,

leading to self-harm, suicide and even murder Those who have long

questioned the safety and efficacy of Seroxat were ridiculed and

undermined by the pharmaceutical industry.

They have propagated the myth that life is a state of perpetual

euphoria. All moments of discomfort, pain, boredom, grief or anxiety

should be treated as illnesses requiring drugs. GSK has said

antidepressants should be taken by half the female population of the

United Kingdom and a third of the male population; it wants to see

25 million people on antidepressant drugs.

The charity MIND has courageously exposed the tragedies of over-

prescribing. They take no money from pharmas. The Depression

Alliance has called for a further 9 million people to be treated for

depression. More than 80% of DA's funding comes from pharmas. Not

only did they not support MIND's campaign, they tried to undermine

it by attacking Panorama's programmes that exposed the perils of

Seroxat.

Earlier this year, this practice was exposed when an internal

document from GlaxoKline, revealed that data demonstrating the

ineffectiveness of Seroxat in treating depression in children was

not passed to regulators because it would undermine the profile of

the drug. The study, an analysis of published and unpublished data

of trials of SSRIs in treating children with depression, reveals a

staggering manipulation of data. Unpublished trials were found to

contain data which show the drugs to be either ineffective or even

dangerous. Urgent reform to force the publication of all trials is

needed. The full report `Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors in

childhood depression: systematic review of published versus

unpublished data' by Craig J Whittington, Tim Kendall, Fonagy,

Cottrell, Cotgrove, Ellen Boddington can be found at

www.thelancet.com.

Early day Motions in the name of PF:-

MEDICINES OUT OF CONTROL 17.03.04 Flynn/ That this House hails

the publication of the book 'Medicines Out of Control' as a

remarkable account of history repeating itself over the last 150

years in the promotion of anti-depression drugs; congratulates Mr

Medawar and Anita Hardon for revealing mountainous evidence

of incompetence and inaction by regulatory authorities and profit-

driven pharmaceutical giants in advocating the use of cocaine,

bromides, barbiturates, benzodiazepines and anti-depressants as safe

drugs until use by millions of patients have proved them to be

addictive, dangerous and of little or no utility; and regrets that

more than six million people in Britain and 10 million children in

the USA are currently using anti-depressants in spite of mounting

evidence that they have been vastly over-prescribed for the mild

depression that is an inevitable part of the human experience. That

this House expresses concern at the tragic deaths associated with

the anti-depressant drug Seroxat and the news that GlaxoKline

suppressed news of two 1998 studies that demonstrated that the drug

was no more effective than placebos; notes with alarm the Department

of Health's view that Seroxat can make the symptoms of depression

more severe and the decision of a court that Seroxat was responsible

for a change in the behaviour of a man who took his own life and

that of his family; and calls for a full investigation of the

conduct of GlaxoKline who appear to have put their private

greed before public safety.

That this House congratulates New York State Attorney General Eliot

Spitzer on his decision to sue the pharmaceutical company

GlaxoKline for alleged repeated and persistent fraud by

suppressing the results of studies that showed the anti-depressant

Seroxat is no more effective, or less effective, than a placebo in

treating depression in young people and that the incidence of

suicidal tendencies doubled among users in three of the trials;

notes in one trial 6.5 per cent. of the sample taking Seroxat

developed suicidal tendencies compared to 1.1 per cent. in the

placebo group; is shocked to learn that the results were suppressed

because GlaxoKline decided that admitting that the drug did not

work in children would be commercially unacceptable... as this would

undermine the profile of Seroxat; and calls for early action here to

conclude the delayed Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory

Agency investigation into Seroxat. Line 4, after 'future',

insert 'Further notes that Depression Alliance is funded by

Pharmaceutical Companies many of which manufacture the controversial

Selective Seratonin Uptake Inhibitors; regrets the silence of the

Depression Alliance in the recent exposure of the addictivity, fatal

adverse effects and lack of utility of SSRIs; commends MIND for

refusing all support from drug companies and congratulates them for

leading the campaign against the dangers of Seroxat and their clear

policy of differentiating between severe depression and other forms

of depression that are an inevitable part of human experience.