Why has Big Pharma failed to produce new antibiotics for
deadly infections like MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), VRE
(vancomycin-resistant enterococci),
C. Difficile and Acinetobacter baumannii even as they leap from hospital
to community settings? Because there is no money in it!
Pharma executives "have shown less interest in medicines like antibiotics that actually cure disease than in those that only treat symptoms," writes Melody Petersen, author of Our Daily Meds. "Most blockbusters are pills for conditions such as anxiety, high cholesterol or constipation that must be taken daily, often for months or years. They are designed for rich Americans who can afford to buy them." Nor are medicines for tropical diseases like malaria, which kills a child every 30 seconds, a priority, notes Petersen. They also lack ka-ching.
Since direct-to-consumer drug advertising debuted in the
late 1990s, the number of people on prescription drugs and especially
prescription drugs for life has
ballooned. Between 2001
to 2007 the number of adults
and children on one or more prescriptions for chronic conditions rose by more
than 12 million reports the
Associated Press and 25
percent of US children now
take a medication for a chronic condition. Seven percent of kids take two or
more daily drugs. Who says advertising doesn't work?
Of the top selling drugs in 2011, led by Lipitor, Nexium, Plavix, Advair Diskus, Abilify, Seroquel, Singulair and Crestor, none is taken occasionally, or "as needed" and the treatment goal is never being getting off the drug like an antibiotic. Why would Pharma deal itself out of the game?
There are two ways Pharma hooks the US public on
prescriptions for life. First, prescriptions that used to be taken as needed for pain, anxiety, GERD (gastroesophageal reflux),
asthma, mood problems, migraines and even erectile dysfunction, gout and
retroviruses (in some cases) are now full-time medicines. Instead of having a
bad day or heartburn, you have a disease like anxiety or GERD which calls for full pharmaceutical artillery. Instead
of having body pain to be treated transiently, you are put on an antidepressant
like Cymbalta or seizure drug like Lyrica or Neurontin indefinitely.
Secondly, many of the top selling drugs today are to
prevent chronic conditions like high
cholesterol, high blood pressure and osteoporosis that people are said to be
"at risk" for. Needless to say, in both cases, people never know if
the drugs are working or whether they would have had symptoms without them.
This creates a loyal customer who is afraid to quit a prescription because it might be working. And why should they quit anyway when a
third party is probably paying?
Here are some drugs, not all, that are marketed for
perpetuity.
ADHD and Drugs for Pediatric
"Psychopathologies"
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