As late as May 7, 2007, Prohost Biotechnology, a firm that evaluates companies and publishes a monthly newsletter for investors, was calling Dendreon a good investment on its web site, stating: We Have A New Pick "DENDERON AGAIN."
The web site went on to explain why the firm was predicting that the short sellers were wrong in betting against the company, by stating in part:
This time, positive investors/analysts are determined to neutralize the shorters' efforts. Why not, if the verdict is expected in 10 days only and the committee, which was appointed by the FDA itself has already voted 17-0 in favor of safety and 13-4 in favor of efficacy?
We are with the approval, Prohost said. "As a matter of fact, we expect it on May 15, based on many facts, the most important is the result of the FDA committee's voting."
The firm noted that the experts on the panel would not have been chosen by the FDA if they were not highly regarded researchers, medical doctors, and academicians, and stated:
"If the results of voting would have been 50-50, we would have understood the need for the FDA to take a stand. But with a landslide voting in favor of approval, we do not see why the FDA should hesitate to follow the committee's recommendation of approval.
"Besides, the vaccine is safe. It acts synergistically with the available treatments and it helped desperate patients survive advanced prostate cancer."
But as it turns out, another plot was put in action immediately after the news came out that the panel recommended approval, in which government officials at the FDA and the National Cancer Institute worked with Dr Scher, and probably Dr Hussain, to compose letters with bogus reasons why the FDA should not follow the recommendation.
Once the rough drafts were edited, the letters were sent to the FDA by email and hardcopy, and leaked for publication on the internet by "The Cancer Letter," which just happens to be the same rag used to leak insider information in the ImClone case.
The overly dramatic Dr Scher, even went so far as to tell Thomas Fleming, another doctor who just happened to send a letter to the FDA, disparaging Provenge, which was also put out on the internet by "The Cancer Letter," that he could not sleep because he was so concerned over the possibility of patients being harmed if Provenge was approved and that's why he wrote the letter. Dr Fleming then noted that he could not sleep either.
This is an utterly ridiculous remark coming from Dr Scher, considering that he and Dr Hussain voted with the majority 17-0 that Provenge was safe at the hearing.
The pharmaceutical companies that stood to benefit the most from the non-approval of Provenge were Novacea, Schering-Plough and Sanofi-Aventis because they have billions of dollars invested in research, drug trials, and cancer treatments involving therapies that would compete directly with Provenge for the same late stage prostate cancer patients.
Dr Scher and Dr Hussain, as well as her husband, are involved in dozens of studies conducted by the same companies. Both Dr Scher and Dr Hussain are consultants and members of the scientific advisory board for Novacea, which produces Asentar together with Schering-Plough.
Asentar would directly compete with Provenge and at the time of the Advisory Committee hearing, Dr Scher was the co-lead investigator on trials of Asentar
According to www.portfolio.com, Dr Scher is also an officer, member of the Board of Directors, and a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of ProQuest Investments, which was had mega-bucks invested in Novacea during 2007. However, for some odd reason, ProQuest's web site no longer lists the names for the Scientific Advisory Board.
Dr Scher and Dr Hussain have also both received research funding from Sanofi-Aventis the maker of Taxotere.
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