Cancer Doctors Protest 'Astronomical' Drug Costs

[n_K]

http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/23088885 "No association between influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 vaccination and narcolepsy..."

You know, that's actually hilarious and shows just how **** the US system is, they find no link where the rest of the world finds a link, it's just like going back to the old studies of researchers finding cigerettes cause cancer but good old america says it doesn't.

[cork1958]

Drugs are expensive because the companies want to make huge profits, there is no other reason.

'it takes lots of time effort and research to find cures and blah blah blah blah blah' is complete and utter garbage.

+1

And while they're at it, why don't ALL the doctors protest the high cost of THEIR services and the cost for ALL drugs!!

Absolutely stupid!!

When I had my cancer in 1993, the price they were charging back then was astronomical even and I had a kind that was like 90% curable, common and nothing to radical!!

[Pharm88]

Below link is to a Forbes article from last year on drug R&D, but AstraZeneca alone spent ~$58 billion on R&D between 1997 and 2011 yet only 5 drugs made it through approval to market - almost $12 billion per drug. Other companies ranged between that and just under $3.7 billion per released drug. The biggest R&D spender was Pfizer at over $108 billion; 14 approved drugs at about $7.7 billion per drug.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewherper/2012/02/10/the-truly-staggering-cost-of-inventing-new-drugs/

Exactly the article I was going to quote..

Many people don't consider those drugs that don't make it to approval. Of course companies are going to need to make up those expenditures! While I believe the drug development paradigm is shifting slightly (most big companies are transitioning away from in house development) the largest expenditures in the development process are the large phase III trials that cost tens on millions of dollar.

[cleverclogs]

You know, that's actually hilarious and shows just how **** the US system is, they find no link where the rest of the world finds a link, it's just like going back to the old studies of researchers finding cigerettes cause cancer but good old america says it doesn't.

...that was a south Korean study.

[fusi0n]

+1

And while they're at it, why don't ALL the doctors protest the high cost of THEIR services and the cost for ALL drugs!!

Absolutely stupid!!

When I had my cancer in 1993, the price they were charging back then was astronomical even and I had a kind that was like 90% curable, common and nothing to radical!!

I agree the high prices are insane..

but IT DOES COST A LOT OF MONEY for the RESEARCH.

[n_K]

It probably does cost a lot for research

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GlaxoSmithKline

Profit of ?4,000,000,000 is no small figure.

[Hum]

I agree but how are you going to get them to stop doing it?

All you could do is stop buying their drugs.

[theyarecomingforyou]

Below link is to a Forbes article from last year on drug R&D, but AstraZeneca alone spent ~$58 billion on R&D between 1997 and 2011 yet only 5 drugs made it through approval to market - almost $12 billion per drug. Other companies ranged between that and just under $3.7 billion per released drug. The biggest R&D spender was Pfizer at over $108 billion; 14 approved drugs at about $7.7 billion per drug.

http://www.forbes.co...ting-new-drugs/

Nobody disputes that. The issue is the scale of the profits being posted by such companies, all the while people are dying or being forced into insane levels of debt due to exorbitant pricing. If McDonald's engages in abusive business practices you can simply buy your food elsewhere; if Pfizer or GSK does the same you could die or be left penniless. Don't get me wrong, the major pharmaceutical companies are certainly not the only problem with the system but they are a major part of what's wrong.

[Growled Member]

All you could do is stop buying their drugs.

So they have got us between a rock and a hard place.

[+Red King Subscriber²]

It is simple capitalism - if you do not like it go to North Korea you socialist ******.

People have the freedom to charge the most profitable price for various drugs - otherwise, imagine what you would have, a society where people care for each other.

[Torolol]

in digital realm, theres reverse engineering & digital duplication (with modification as needed),

music publisher for example, can't risk raising the price in iTunes fearing losing market share due to 'illegal copying'.

what about in chemistry realm of drugs ?

[n_K]

in digital realm, theres reverse engineering & digital duplication (with modification as needed),

music publisher for example, can't risk raising the price in iTunes fearing losing market share due to 'illegal copying'.

what about in chemistry realm of drugs ?

Welcome to patents where you can screw everyone over for as long as possible.