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Author Archive: Arthur Caplan

01/15/2013

The Moral Failure of HPV Vaccination

Arthur Caplan, Ph.D.

Among the greatest failures in American public health—and the list is a long one—is the rise in the incidence of cervical cancer.  Incredibly, cancers caused by human papillomavirus rose in the past decade. From 2000 to 2009 rates of oral, vulva and anal cancers increased, according to a recent study by the National Cancer Institute. What makes this grim fact a notable public health failure is that we have not one but two vaccines that can greatly diminish these cancers.  Both Merck and GSK market HPV vaccines–Gardasil and Cervarix.  Gardisal has been around since 2006. So given the preventive power of the vaccines, why the upward trend in cancer?…

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09/28/2007

Report Paints Grim Picture of Drug Trial Safety


by Arthur L. Caplan

When a bridge collapses in an American city or a mine implodes, it does not take long before government gets in motion to figure out what to do about the problem. We see the carnage and demand action.

When a federal agency charged with protecting your health and safety is found grossly deficient, the response, sadly, is mainly talk.

hat is because it is hard to see where the victims are and, without them, it is hard to get the problem fixed. But when it comes to the Food and Drug Administration, we had better demand repairs.…

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This entry was posted in Research Ethics and tagged , , . Posted by Arthur Caplan. Bookmark the permalink.

09/17/2007

Giving Up on Gene Therapy Is Wrong Reaction

by Arthur L. Caplan

The recent death of Jolee Mohr is likely to have a seismic impact on the future of gene therapy research.

Biotech companies, private investors and government funders will shy away from sponsoring further research because Mohr died while a subject in an experiment using genetic engineering to treat disease.

But giving up on gene therapy is not the right lesson to learn from this tragedy.

Mohr had rheumatoid arthritis, an immune system disorder that caused pain and stiffness in her joints.

By using HUMIRA, a relatively new anti-inflammatory drug made by Abbott Laboratories, she was able to keep her symptoms under control.…

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This entry was posted in Genetics and tagged , . Posted by Arthur Caplan. Bookmark the permalink.

09/14/2007

Women Should Be Wary of Genetic Risk Ads


by Arthur L. Caplan

Myriad Genetics, a Salt Lake City biotechnology company, has seen its stock price rise in the past few days. My hunch is investors are responding to the company’s unprecedented direct-to-consumer television advertising campaign aimed at women concerned about breast and ovarian cancer.

It would be fair to say that this encompasses just about every woman in the world old enough to have heard of breast cancer or ovarian cancer.

hose investing in Myriad stock know that is a pretty big market for a company offering a test that can detect genes which dispose women to getting these cancers.…

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This entry was posted in Genetics and tagged , . Posted by Arthur Caplan. Bookmark the permalink.