Big pharma and the UK Government.

15 Wellcome Trust. Death of a serviceman: will a study of a 50-year old death help us safeguard medical ethics in these troubled times? 18 Page WF. Long-term health effects of exposures to sarin and other anticholinesterase chemical warfare agents. Elevated frequency of sister chromatid exchanges of lymphocytes in sarin-exposed victims of the Tokyo disaster 3 years after the event. 21 Abou-Donia MB. Organophosphorus ester-induced chronic neurotoxicity. A, Kasai K, et al. Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms in victims of Tokyo subway attack: a 5-year follow-up study. Support for the relationship between serum cholinesterase and post-traumatic stress disorder; 5-year follow-ups of victims of the Tokyo subway sarin poisoning. Committee reported on the influence of the pharmaceutical industry. 1 The committee began its inquiry in June, 2004, took evidence from 50 witnesses during nine public sessions, made four site visits (including trips to Brussels and Australia), and received nearly 160 written submissions. Its overall findings were clear: the influence of the pharmaceutical industry is enormous and out of control. The committee learned that while the industry's influence was traditionally targeted at health profes-children, and politicians. Other parallel issues also arose. Could patients be disadvantaged by the fact that the large multinationals design, sponsor, orchestrate, and control the publication of all the key drug trials; produce, market, and promote the medicines we take; and virtually determine how medicines are prescribed? Big pharma works hard and spends vast amounts to gain influence, and a key question facing the committee was whether such a pervasive influence could be in the interest of public health? Moreover, if the influence of big pharma is so ubiquitous, and assuming that its aims are achieved by legal means, can anything be done to curb its effects? Most of the committee's 48 recommendations were directed at the UK Department of Health. Other recommendations reflected wider concerns and addressed, for instance, the Department of Trade and Industry, universities, patients' and professional groups, and, of course, big pharma itself. The Government published their response in Sept-ember. 2 In many areas, the Government intends to make changes and these are to be welcomed. But the response reveals how aspects of Government remain aloof and out of touch. The committee's most telling recommendation was the call for a public inquiry into the workings of the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency—