02 - FDA Rally: If I am terminal, it should be my option...!

Bruce Tower pulls no punches at a rally at the FDA to support early access to promising treatments for the terminally ill. Tower, a prostate cancer survivor, has suffered just about every kind of nasty side-effect known to man. He's had a hard life since his diagnosis and doesn't understand how the FDA can delay a treatment like Provenge when the FDA's own advisory committee -- stocked with the world's greatest authorities on immunotherapy -- voted 17-0 that it was safe and 13-4 that is showed substantial evidence of efficacy, which is the Congressional standard for conditional approval. He says, "It's my life. Let me decide!"

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Cancer
• Rally
• FDA
• Access
• to
• Promising
• Treatments
• Drugs
• Provenge
• Conditional
• Approval
• Help
• Desperate
• Need

[japanjimmyd]

Howard Scherr lead an unprecedented attack on Provenge as a member of the FDA Advisory Committee reviewing Provenge, illegally leaking a private letter to the Press politicizing the decision. He also served on the Board at Proquest Investments hedge fund a major investor in Novacea, and as an Advisor to Novacea, a company developing a rival drug to Provenge which got a $400 million deal from Scherring just weeks after he sunk the Provenge approval. Congressional Investigation now!

[az09abcdefg]

Unbelievable that Provenge could not be treated fairly by the FDA so now men will needlessly die. Many Provenge recipients (from clinical trials) are still alive after many years and even years later are golfing fishing and leading high quality lives.

AIPC patients are terminal and if you are AIPC then every other treatment has been tried but failed. Their choice now is limited to Provenge or death. FDA says tough luck you get death.

How Does Dr. Pazdur sleep at night?

[50hambone]

FDA your heads are up your ass so take a good look and help these people

[robijill]

My husband went to school with his son and greatly admired Bruce. Our prayers and thoughts go out to his family and friends.

[joanimalg1]

Bruce Tower passed away on 8/24/09 from Prostate cancer, he was a brave and wonderful man. RiP Bruce and God bless his wonderful family.

[sebastiancoon]

Please send this video to President Obama.

Let him study the data and decide if he was faced with a 'quality of life' decision, the last prayers of the terminally ill, would he opt to spend one more second of life, given the chance with Provenge, feeling the warmth of his family by his side.

[doctorcane]

and yet millions of lemmings want socialized medicine in the USA. Wow, call me shocked.

[achchhaa]

Members of the FDA that were responsible for the Delay of Provenge should be held criminally liable for their actions!

[Gregorio035]

Moving, excellent personal presentation by an effected individual. I thought the government employees worked FOR us not against us! The FDA needs to get off their big pharma induced butts and approve Provenge now !!!

[JJV2659]

Heart wrenching speech brings tears to my eyes!

Who is in charge at the FDA? It certainly is not Dr. von Eschenbach, at least with respect to FDA's Office of Oncologic Drug Division (OOD); it is Dr. Richard Pazdur. Mister 'no cancer drug is good until I say it is good'! Dr. Pazdur has his own little fiefdom at the FDA. Perhaps others have their own fiefdoms at the FDA with Dr. von Eschenbach acting as a political figurehead.