You may recall that last month,
three congressmen wrote the House Energy and Commerce Committee to ask for a hearing into allegations that undislosed financial conflicts of interest among FDA advisory committee members may have swayed an agency decision last spring to delay approval of Provenge, a prostate cancer vaccine being developed by Dendreon.
The move capped several months of controversy over the role of the panel members, in particular, Howard Scher, an oncologist at Sloan-Kettering Memorial Cancer Center in New York. Scher was one of two FDA panel members who wrote the agency urging a go-slow approach. It so happens that Scher also serves on the scientific advisory board of ProQuest Investments, a venture capital firm that invested in Novacea, which is developing a rival cancer med.
Apparently, the publicity was too much for ProQuest. Since the congressmen released their Dec. 13 letter, the venture capital firm took down the page on its web site that named the members of its scientific advisory board. And so it's no longer easy to determine that the controversial Scher is affiliated with ProQuest. We've written two senior partners, including Jay Moorin, the founding general partner, for comment, but no one has yet responded. For his part, Scher has kept a very low profile over the past few months, declining to directly answer questions.
13 Comments
Ed -
Thanks for your continued coverage on this mess. We're hoping justice comes quickly and swiftly for those responsible for delaying Provenge which has caused the premature deaths of 10's of thousands of late stage PC patients.
Keep up the good work.
MJ
Ugggghh. Depressing enough how the FDA is incompetent at gatekeeping drugs for end-stage disease. Now with the alleged corruption on top of that. The FDA has reached a new low I though unimaginable in dehumanizing cancer patients.
Ed -
Thanks for your continued coverage on this mess.
"Apparently, the publicity was too much for ProQuest. Since the congressmen released their Dec. 13 letter, the venture capital firm took down the page on its web site that named the members of its scientific advisory board."
Do they have anything to hide? If "no", why take down the web page? Anyway, it's a futile exercise, just take a look at here: http://web.archive.org/web/20061213203247/www.proquestvc.com/scienceadvisory.asp
Regards, phil
Ed: Thanks for covering this and keeping the pressure on these despicable people. Richard
That's beautiful. First, none of his friends would come to his defense after he signed a letter that he and other government employees at the FDA and NCI wrote on his behalf (you remember...the letter disparaging Provenge that was leaked to The Cancer Letter shortly after being delivered to the FDA). And now, Scher has become the quintessential red-headed stepchild over at ProQuest Investments. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
Thanks again, Ed. It's very important that this change is publicly noted.
One other change - at least one other congressman, Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D) of Maryland, has sent a letter of concurrence to the Energy and Commerce commitee, requesting that it hold hearings on FDA's handling of Provenge approval.
Thanks, Ed. But for people like you those responsible for derailing Provenge for selfish reasons rather than for the public good would succeed in covering their tracks.
Keep up the good work.
Great job again Ed. You have a direct pulse on what is going on. I (and my family consisting of 3 PC patients) thank you for your work to expose the injustice brought upon PC patients. Why not answer questions, remove links tying Scher to Proquest on the website, refuse FOIA requests, etc if there is nothing to hide?? You continue to turn the light on in the room forcing the cockroaches to scatter. Keep pressing on!
As an advanced prostate cancer patient, I want to say "thank you", for keeping the pressure on a group of people that would allow so many of us to die so they could make a buck!!! Again, thank you.
See Ed Silverman See Ed's shining light. See Ed's light shining on the darkness at the FDA, ProQuest and the Wall Street hedgies. See the cockroaches scurrying for cover. Run, cockroaches, run.
See Dr. Miller on CNBC. See Dr. Miller excoriate the FDA, too. Hear Jon Najarian comment on the Dendrion probe. See the cockroaches run. Run, cockroaches, run!
See Proquest take down their website. See them hide Dr. Scher from the light. Why? Proquest? Why hide from the light?? Run, Proquest, run!
Feel the pain of all PCa victims. See how they were deprived of ProVenge. See how many deaths since May 9th. Why are the cockroaches running?
Run for your lives, cockroaches....RUN!!!
You have to wonder if Howard is losing any sleep worrying about whether his "friends" are worrying that Howard might just want to 'fess up" rather than live as a Sleep-Aides junkie? I don't think ProQuest, Dr Pazdur or any of Howard's "remaining" friends would look forward to Howard coming clean....
Meanwhile, thank you Ed for continuing to shine the light on a story that demands sunshine.
Abigail Alliance for Better Access to Developmental Drugs The Provenge FDA debacle is just one of so many examples of lives lost, because of the FDA. Here is a VERY important Abigail Alliance quote from our website www.abigail-alliance.org : Every drug for cancer and other serious life-threatening illnesses that the Abigail Alliance has pushed for earlier access to in our six and a half year history is now approved by the FDA. There is not one drug we pushed for that did not make it through the clinical trial process. Of course we have drugs on our list we are currently pushing for access to and approval of, including Provenge, Genasense, Junovan, GVAX, and others. Frank Burroughs President, Abigail Alliance frankburrroughs@abigail-alliance.org
Abigail Alliance has done a tremendous job of advocating for earlier access to safe and effective therapies for the terminally ill. Everyone at CareToLive supports the efforts of Abigail Alliance to get treatments to terminal patients as quickly as possible.
Keep after them Frank and thank you Ed for keeping this worthy fight in the News.