Archives | (April 2003) Printer Friendly
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For most Americans, the concept of medical research conjures up visions of gray-haired scientists in white lab coats selflessly searching for test tube miracles to help humankind. Implicit in this image is the belief that reverence for human life is the cornerstone of their labors and a desire to heal the mortar that binds them together. But, as is too often the case, the reality of medical research falls far short of its lofty image. Indeed, in many instances, it is characterized by greed, ambition and arrogance rather than altruism.

Last month, Protocol 126, a bone marrow transplant experiment with deadly consequences conducted at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center demonstrated what can happen when researchers are motivated by greed. In the end, 15 patients died, and none benefited. All were misled about the safety and effectiveness of the treatment they were to undergo. Worse, authorities who were responsible for ensuring the safety of patients failed at every level to fulfill their mandate.

But, as terrible as the consequences of Protocol 126 were, they might be dismissed as an aberration, a failure of the system to weed out one out-of-control experiment. Unfortunately, as the history of Protocol 681 demonstrates, the excesses of Protocol 126 were no aberration, they appear to have been business as usual.

The most basic rule physicians live by is “First do no harm” at least, it’s the most basic rule for the majority of physicians. Some of the scientists at The Hutch, however, seem to believe that the rule doesn’t apply to research. An experiment they ran, labeled Protocol 681, not only did harm, it proved fatal. While Protocol 681 was initially a clear example of taxpayer-funded research for profit, it evolved into something else. Even after the scientists initially involved abandoned the drug they were using because it might be doing more harm than good, their successors continued the research. Worse, when these researchers realized the drug they were giving patients was killing them, they increased the dose! Not only that, even as the researchers were continuing to administer the drugs to unwitting test subjects, they were working on an article that said the drugs might be doing more harm than good. It was almost as though the experiment had taken on a life of its own, continuing regardless of the clear evidence of failure or the potential danger to patients!

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