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Originally Posted by SallyC
Great Article.
What I can't understand is, that if they knew these people had the JV Virus antibodies running through their systems, why didn't they stop Tysabri before they got PML??? 
If I were you guys, I would get tested for the JV antibodies right away and if you test positive, get off of Tysabri immediately.
I can see why this revelation might hurt Biogen's bottom line and why they'd like to keep this hush hush....sheesh, what a bunch of greedy ********!!!! |
It's because they didn't have those samples in front of them at the start and the samples had to be tested, Sal. At the time it was also believed that 90% of the world population carried the JC virus. The rate is now believed to be around 50% of the world population. It was also not easy to test for it and it was extremely time consuming and expensive. I don't believe that in a controlled trial environment, the patients names would have been attached to the samples either, just a control number.
One thing that IS happening with all this is that the science of understanding JCV and PML is being advanced and this will benefit a huge number of people, not just those with MS who are on Tysabri. It will have implications across the board, since it's been a problem with other drugs and other diseases.
IMO, Ted Yednock is a hero! His work in the field of MS treatment and now in working on this issue puts him at the very top of my list of people who deserve a Nobel prize in medicine!