Articles by Jeanne Lenzer
The Profit Motive Behind New Alzheimer’s Treatments
When Barbara Feuerstein, seventy-two, saw a Facebook ad offering a free blood test for Alzheimer’s disease, she jumped at the opportunity. The ad, placed by a research center, offered the test, recently cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), as part of a drug study to prevent the disease. “I figured it must be safe if it was FDA approved,” said Feuerstein.
The Campaign To Turn Healthy People Into Alzheimer’s Patients
When Barbara Feuerstein, 72, saw a Facebook ad offering a free blood test for Alzheimer’s disease, she jumped at the opportunity. The ad, placed by a research center, offered the test, recently cleared by the Food and Drug Administration, as part of a drug study to prevent the disease. “I figured it must be safe if it was FDA approved,” said Feuerstein.
Should You Take The Alzheimer’s Blood Test?
Registered readers of The Lever get access to a limited number of free articles every month, breaking news alerts, and our Lever Daily newsletter. Great! Check your inbox and click the link. Sorry, something went wrong. Please try again. Already have an account? Sign in
Will the new FDA fix the old FDA?
Jeanne Lenzer, freelance journalist, Shannon Brownlee, freelance journalist New York jeanne.lenzer{at}gmail.com Donald Trump’s government vowed to fix longstanding problems with the Food and Drug Administration. Almost a year into Trump’s second term, how is the FDA faring? Jeanne Lenzer and Shannon Brownlee report A string of scandals in recent decades has led to sharp criticism of the relationship between the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
How Big Pharma Turned FDA Approval Into a Rubber Stamp
The Food and Drug Administration, once a powerful regulatory agency, has been compromised by its cozy relationship with Big Pharma. Despite feigned concern for public health, the Trump administration is only worsening the agency’s decline. Alberto Espay was not prepared for how his world would be upended when he published a study on the number of people who have died while taking new, high-profile Alzheimer’s drugs.
Science For Sale: How Drugmakers Captured The FDA
This article is Part Three of an investigation into the Food and Drug Administration’s drug approval process and its implications for public safety and health. The project is supported by The Lever and the McGraw Center for Business Journalism at CUNY’s Newmark Graduate School of Journalism . Read Part One and Part Two. Alberto Espay was not prepared for how his world would be upended when he published a study on the number of people who have died while taking new, high-profile Alzheimer’s drugs.
FDA drug chief resigns amid lawsuit claims of attempting to “extort and solicit a bribe”
“Personal vendetta” alleged The suit further charges that Tidmarsh “made false and defamatory statements” in connection with a “longstanding personal vendetta” against Kevin Tang, the chair of the board of Aurinia. According to the suit, this vendetta began in 2019 when Tang, then chair of the board of La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company, asked Tidmarsh to step down as chief executive of La Jolla over concerns about his management of the company.
FDA Approved Hundreds of Drugs Without Evidence They Work. Many Are Dangerous.
This article was originally published by The Lever, an investigative newsroom. If you like this story, sign up for The Lever’s free newsletter. Nieraj Jain was puzzled by the patient sitting quietly in front of him. The woman, in her 60s, was losing her eyesight; that much was clear. Her vision was blurred, and she was having increasing difficulty seeing at night and in bright sunlight. Less obvious was the cause.
FDA Approved — And Ineffective
This article is Part Two of an investigation into the Food and Drug Administration’s drug approval process and what it means for the public’s safety and health. The project is supported by The Lever and the McGraw Center for Business Journalism at CUNY’s Newmark Graduate School of Journalism . Read Part One and Part Three. Nieraj Jain was puzzled by the patient sitting quietly in front of him. The woman, in her 60s, was losing her eyesight; that much was clear.
Do Your Drugs Work? A Searchable Database
Curious about the science behind the medicines you’ve been prescribed — and whether that science stands up to scrutiny? As part of our investigation “FDA Approved — And Ineffective,” we compiled a searchable database of all 429 drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration between January 2013 and Dec. 31, 2022, and the scientific evidence submitted by drugmakers to demonstrate the drugs were safe and effective. You can use the following database to evaluate drugmakers’ claims.
The Hidden Plot to Legalize Corruption in America
Paid subscribers save 20% → Redeem Discount Also available at major retailers → Find a Bookseller Having problems with purchase? See our book FAQ. How did our democracy become a kleptocracy? Master Plan pulls back the curtain on a half‑century strategy that rewrote the rules of American politics—turning wealth into power, stripping oversight and decriminalizing corruption at the highest levels.
Big Pharma Is Pushing Potentially Deadly Alzheimer’s Drugs
Six years ago, Genevieve Lane was enjoying an active life in Florida when she began to forget her neighbors’ names and where she put her keys. At seventy-six, she might have shrugged off these lapses as mere signs of aging, but when she began to have moments of confusion and occasionally got lost while out walking, her housemate and longtime friend Vicki Holmes told her about a nearby research center.
The Deadly Secrets Behind “Breakthrough” Alzheimer’s Drugs
This article is Part One of an investigation into the Food and Drug Administration’s drug approval process and what it means for the public’s safety and health. The project is supported by The Lever and the McGraw Center for Business Journalism at CUNY’s Newmark Graduate School of Journalism . Read Part Two and Part Three. Six years ago, Genevieve Lane was enjoying an active life in Florida when she began to forget her neighbors’ names and where she put her keys.
What Alzheimer’s Drugs Do Inside Your Skull
This full story is for paid subscribers. Sign up for a paid subscription to The Lever now to gain access to this story and more. Already have an account? Sign in
Re: Donanemab: Conflicts of interest found in FDA committee that approved new Alzheimer’s drug
Dear Editor, We respond to four points made by Teresa J Buracchio et al, on behalf of the FDA: First, regarding financial conflicts The FDA leaves out important information regarding the agency’s increasing reliance on advisory committee members who have ties to drug and medical device makers.
Gender: When society, not the individual, should be the patient
Dear Editor, I appreciate the thoughtful and nuanced comments of John Launer, Kamran Abbasi, and Margaret McCartney about gender dysphoria. In asking for evidence, we need not only information on the outcomes for the individuals affected, but information about why children and often their parents are increasingly demanding gender transition surgery.
Secret report surfaces showing that Pfizer was at fault in Nigerian drug tests
A secret Nigerian government report concluded that the drug manufacturer Pfizer undertook an “illegal trial of an unregistered drug” when the company enrolled nearly 100 Nigerian children with meningitis in a trial testing its antibiotic trovafloxacin (Trovan) against ceftriaxone during a 1996 meningitis epidemic.
What Sweden Got Right About COVID
Talk about killjoys. While the rest of us are enjoying what’s starting to feel like a return to everyday life, some experts are warning that there’s another COVID-19 variant coming. Philadelphia has reinstituted its mask mandate.
What’s Wrong with the FDA?
If Robert Califf, the White House nominee for commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, is confirmed by the Senate, he’ll take the reins of an agency with its reputation in tatters. Once revered as the global leader in drug regulation, the FDA has approved one bad drug and medical device after another over the past 30 years, leaving staff demoralized and overseas regulators scratching their heads.
No, Negotiating for Lower Drug Prices Won’t Hurt Innovation or Seniors
The Build Back Better bill gives Medicare the power to buy drugs cheaply. No wonder Big Pharma is trying to smear it. October 26, 2021 | 5:00 AM Retiree Donna Weiner shows some of the daily prescription medications that she needs and pays over $6,000 a year through a Medicare prescription drug plan at her home, October 5, 2021, in Longwood, Florida (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack) While Americans are famously divided, there’s nearly universal despair over the high price of prescription drugs.
Should regulatory authorities approve drugs based on surrogate endpoints?
Intended for healthcare professionals Toggle navigation The BMJ logo Toggle top menu News & Views Should regulatory... Should regulatory authorities approve drugs based on surrogate endpoints?
When It Comes to the Delta Variant, the Kids Are All Right
With few exceptions, parents should send their children back to the classroom—despite a COVID-19 surge. September 15, 2021 | 5:00 AM Students wear masks as they work in a fourth-grade classroom, Tuesday, February 2, 2021, at Elk Ridge Elementary School in Buckley, Washington. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren) Parents are naturally worried about sending their children to school amid the Delta variant—especially those who have kids under 12, who are too young to be vaccinated.
The FDA Is Broken
How the Food and Drug Administration messes up approval of new drugs including the new one, aducanumab, that supposedly helps Alzheimer’s disease patients. July 10, 2021 | 6:00 AM The outside of the Food and Drug Administration headquarters is seen in White Oak, Md., on Monday, November 9, 2015.
How to Get the Covid Vaccine to the Entire World
Getting patent waivers is essential and so is making the vaccine manufacturers share their expertise with generic companies. June 18, 2021 | 5:00 AM A health worker administers Covishield, Serum Institute of India's version of the AstraZeneca vaccine, during a drive-in vaccination program in Kolkata, India, Wednesday, June 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Bikas Das) It was a surprise, and a welcome one.
How Mistreating Nursing Home Staff Helped Spread Covid-19
Poorly paid direct care workers with multiple jobs who can’t afford sick leave spread the pandemic to the most vulnerable. Here’s how we can do better. April 16, 2021 | 5:00 AM A person is loaded into an ambulance, Thursday, March 12, 2020, at the Life Care Center in Kirkland, Wash., near Seattle. The nursing home is at the center of the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus in Washington state. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms.
The FDA Cut Off Covid Vaccine Testing. That Was a Really Bad Idea.
The shots are saving lives, but we don’t know their long-term effects thanks to an agency that often answers to industry instead of the public. March 26, 2021 | 1:00 PM Getty Images/iStockphoto Not since the polio vaccine became available in April 1955 have Americans been so excited about getting a shot. After a year of isolation, fear, and death, most of us can hardly wait to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Grandparents want to be able to hug their grandchildren.
Biden’s choice and FDA’s loosening standards of evidence
Jeanne Lenzer, freelance journalist New York, USA jeanne.lenzer{at}gmail.com The US Food and Drug Administration is widely considered the world’s premier regulator of drugs and devices, but critics say three decades of deregulation have resulted in increasingly lax oversight and lower standards of evidence, writes Jeanne Lenzer Three months into his presidency, Joe Biden is poised to appoint a new commissioner for the Food and Drug Administration.
Bernard Lown: a principled life
Jeanne Lenzer New York, USA jeanne.lenzer{at}gmail.com <graphic>lown250221.f1</graphic> Photo credit: Boris Spremo, Toronto Star, Getty images The remarkable achievements of Bernard Lown, a renowned cardiologist and activist, have been catalogued in numerous obituaries since he died. For a list of his awards and accomplishments, the New York Times obituary is instructive. But what is missing from virtually all obituaries are the principles that drove him and how his stands would cost him dearly.
Diverting attention from financial conflicts of interest
Jeanne Lenzer, freelance journalist, associate editor, The BMJ1, Shannon Brownlee, senior vice president2 1New York, USA 2Lown Institute, Brookline, MA, USA jlenzer{at}bmj.com Godlee’s comment that “there is little dispute that non-financial conflicts of interest—such as academic passion and personal belief—are just as important [as], if harder to track” than financial conflicts, begs examination for two reasons.1 Firstly, personal biases are generally, although not always, multidirectional;...
The Case for Helping the World Get Vaccinated
Our economy and health depends on getting poorer countries access to vaccines. Fortunately, there are ways to do that. Here’s how. February 11, 2021 | 5:00 AM When Rodney and Ekaterina Baker, a wealthy couple from Vancouver, Canada, flew to a remote Yukon community on January 21, they never expected the world of trouble their little trip would bring.
Black US doctor is fired after complaint about talk on racism in medicine
A doctor has been fired from her “dream job” as a small group facilitator at a medical school in California after she shared personal and historical incidents of racism during a talk with students. Aysha Khoury, a 42 year old internist, was hired in July 2019 by Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine in Pasadena, which opened in 2020, does not charge fees, and encourages applications from students from diverse backgrounds.
Covid-19: Should vaccine trials be unblinded?
The lack of planning for how to treat participants in covid-19 vaccine trials is a bad precedent, with the loss of potentially valuable safety and efficacy data, say research experts.
The COVID Science Wars
When Max von Pettenkofer shot himself to death in 1901, he left behind a storied career as a hygienist and bitter opponent of Robert Koch, the German physician and microbiologist who discovered the cholera bacillus, Vibrio cholerae. Von Pettenkofer, the founder of the Institute of Hygiene in Munich, disputed Koch’s germ theory of disease, which held that a germ is both necessary and sufficient to cause illness.
The Ioannidis Affair: A Tale of Major Scientific Overreaction
Editor’s note: This article was originally published on November 30, 2020 with a number of errors and misleading claims. First, it should have been labeled “Opinion,” but was not. Second, the authors’ bylines were omitted. Third, the authors failed to note that they have collaborated in the past with both John Ioannidis and Vinay Prasad, who are discussed in this essay, and also in this accompanying story.
Covid-19: Experts debate merits of lockdowns versus “focused protection”
Jeanne Lenzer New York, USA Three experts with widely differing viewpoints regarding appropriate public health measures to control the spread of covid-19 weighed in on lockdowns during a debate1 sponsored by Johns Hopkins University.
Covid-19: Group of UK and US experts argues for “focused protection” instead of lockdowns
Thousands of medical practitioners and public health scientists have signed a declaration arguing for an alternative public health approach to dealing with covid-19. The Great Barrington Declaration,1 published on Monday 5 October, was drawn up by three epidemiologists and public health experts from Harvard, Oxford, and Stanford universities, who describe their approach as “focused protection” of the people most at risk.
Donald Trump: Medical Guinea Pig? | Issues in Science and Technology
October 3, 2020 The two main drugs given to President Trump after he developed COVID-19 have not been proven effective or safe, say two British researchers now studying them in controlled clinical trials, adding that no matter the president’s outcome, “When we come to treat the next patient hospitalized with Covid, we will still be none the wiser about the usefulness of those drugs.” An Issues online exclusive earlier cited this US testing gap, arguing that a “rush to offer unproven...
“Mass hysterectomies” were carried out on migrants in US detention centre, claims whistleblower
Intended for healthcare professionals Toggle navigation The BMJ logo Toggle top menu News & Views “Mass hysterectomies”...
Study Break
Skip Navigation TNR_brand monogram_blackThe New Republic TNR_brand wordmark_black NIH secrets. It’s not news that the pharmaceutical industry routinely suppresses negative data, with the effect of exaggerating the benefits of its drugs and glossing over their risks. Take, for example, the painkiller Vioxx. According to court testimony, the drug’s manufacturer, Merck, withheld data showing that the drug caused five times as many heart attacks as a similar painkiller, naproxyn. The result?
Alteplase for stroke: money and optimistic claims buttress the “brain attack” campaign
Author information Copyright and License information Disclaimer See the article "American Heart Association did not declare interest in alteplase" on page 0. This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Both doctors and the public are becoming more alert to potential conflicts of interest, and an increasing number of journals now require competing interest statements from their authors and reviewers.
“Best” hospitals in US get poor marks in new rating system
Jeanne Lenzer New York, USA A new ranking system has found that some hospitals rated “best” by the annual US News and World Report are failing on criteria that is ignored by the report. Those metrics include how well a hospital provides access to care for people with low incomes and people of colour, whether the hospital avoids overtreatment, and the ratio of chief executive pay to average workers’ wages.
John Ioannidis and Medical Tribalism in the Era of COVID-19
by Jeanne Lenzer & Shannon Brownlee - Undark Magazine By many measures, John Ioannidis is a lion of medical science. The Stanford University professor is the author of some of the most cited journal articles in medical history. His research in statistics and biomedicine has arguably changed the practice of medicine. A 2010 article in The Atlantic said “Ioannidis may be one of the most influential scientists alive.” And you would never know any of this from reading comments about him today.
Pfizer pleads guilty, but drug sales continue to soar
Pfizer, the world's largest drug maker, pleaded guilty on 13 May to numerous civil and criminal charges for illegally promoting the off-label use of gabapentin (Neurontin). It has agreed to pay a $240m (£136m; €200m) criminal fine and $152m to state and federal healthcare programmes. The fine is the second largest given in the industry. Meanwhile, off-label sales of gabapentin continue to soar, despite evidence that the drug is not effective for some of the problems it is used to treat.
What the FDA isn't telling.
Medical Examiner What the FDA isn’t telling. Traci Johnson’s body was discovered on Feb. 7, 2004, hanging by a scarf from a shower rod in an Indianapolis laboratory run by the drug company Eli Lilly. The 19-year-old college student had been serving as a test subject in a clinical trial of the experimental antidepressant duloxetine. Investigators from the Food and Drug Administration rushed to Indianapolis to determine whether the experimental drug was related to her death. The probe was inconclusive.
Pandemic Science Out of Control
Jeanne Lenzer & Shannon Brownlee, Issues in Science and Technology April 29, 2020 On September 14, 1918, in the midst of the worst pandemic in modern history, an article in the New York Times quoted Dr. Rupert Blue, then surgeon general of the US Public Health Service. Blue reported that doctors in many countries were treating their influenza patients with digitalis and the antimalaria drug quinine. Read Full Article » Show comments Hide Comments
Pandemic Science Out of Control
By Jeanne Lenzer, Shannon Brownlee A toxic legacy of poor-quality research, media hype, lax regulatory oversight, and vicious partisanship has come home to roost in the search for effective treatments for COVID-19. On September 14, 1918, in the midst of the worst pandemic in modern history, an article in the New York Times quoted Dr. Rupert Blue, then surgeon general of the US Public Health Service.
Pandemic Science Is Out of Control
By Jeanne Lenzer and Shannon Brownlee April 28, 20209:00 AM One vial of the drug remdesivir displayed in Hamburg, Germany, on April 8. Ulrich Perrey/Getty Images Microsoft Word Finally Weighs In on the Great Spacing Debate Bask in the Joy of Made-Up American Baseball Players’ Names From a 1994 Japanese Nintendo Game Scooters Are Making Cities Safer, More Humane, and More Efficient Does Smoking Make COVID-19 Worse? Better? Here’s What We Actually Know.
Pandemic Science Is Out of Control
By Jeanne Lenzer and Shannon Brownlee April 28, 20209:00 AM One vial of the drug remdesivir displayed in Hamburg, Germany, on April 8.
Covid-19: US gives emergency approval to hydroxychloroquine despite lack of evidence
The US Food and Drug Administration has authorized clinicians to prescribe chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine for patients admitted to hospital with covid-19, despite warnings from scientific advisers that no randomized controlled trial has been conducted to support the drugs’ safety and efficacy in this population.
Robert Coleman Atkins
Robert Atkins, cardiologist and author of the bestselling diet book Dr Atkins' New Diet Revolution, was dismissed as a faddist or worse by most mainstream experts.
Show More
loading
Actions
Get in touch with Jeanne
Contact Jeanne, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack