Good Pharma

"As Light and Maturo write, the Italy-based pharmacological research institution prides itself on "patient-oriented" research rather than a "patent-oriented" model ... . In some ways the Mario Negri approach is not revolutionary: the institute competes for the same grants and contracts as other research organizations. It studies the same types of diseases as other researchers, including breast cancer, epilepsy, and dementia. But it departs from the norm by refusing to pursue patents on the drugs and methods it develops and by pledging open-source sharing of its research data. The institute has also made a commitment not to drop a drug candidate because its profit potential is too low. It is an approach that would have prevented the tragedy of the vaccine for Ebola being unavailable because it sat undeveloped for 10 years due to its perceived unprofitability. The Institute won't allow industry representatives to ghost-write journal articles for its researchers, and it structures clinical trials to include practicing physicians on the research team, an approach it believes will ensure its research has treatment relevancy." (Fran Quigley, Professor of Law, Indiana University, USA) "...combines a devastating critique of the pervasive harms of patent-driven medical research by the pharmaceutical industry with a compelling account of an alternative..." (Erik Olin Wright, Vilas Distinguished Professor, Wisconsin, Past-President, American Sociological Association) "...a bright light on a remarkable approach to conducting pharmacological research in the public interest...research motivated by a social mission centered on compassion for and responsibility to the vulnerable, sick and suffering." (Arthur L. Caplan, Mitty Professor of Bioethics, New York University)

Drawing on key concepts in sociology and management, this history describes a remarkable institute that has elevated medical research and worked out solutions to the troubling practices of commercial pharmaceutical research. Good Pharma is the answer to Goldacre's Bad Pharma: ethical research without commercial distortions.Drawing on key concepts in sociology and management, this history describes a remarkable institute that has elevated medical research and worked out solutions to the troubling practices of commercial pharmaceutical research. Good Pharma is the answer to Goldacre's Bad Pharma: ethical research without commercial distortions.