ABSTRACT
This chapter shows that Maynard's prediction has a factual basis: pharmaceutical companies have tried to corrupt the content of clinical research and the application of that research at every stage in its production. The results of clinical research are the cornerstone for ensuring that patients get optimal pharmacotherapy when drug treatment is necessary. Drugs are initially tested on carefully selected patient populations before they are marketed in order to make it relatively easy to identify whether or not they are efficacious. Medical information is transferred from research scientists to practicing clinicians largely through publications in journals. An especially egregious form of biasing the publication record is the practice of employing ghostwriters. Ghostwriters are men and women specifically recruited to take data from clinical trials and write an article with a "spin" favorable to the drug. Companies in developed countries are only legally allowed to promote their products for indications for which the drug has been approved by the regulatory authority.
