Quote:
Originally Posted by soccertese
i'm not absolutely sure but i think the problem that i see for companies developing new pd drugs for YOPD'ers is the FDA won't approve them unless the work much better than the current industry standard. so a new dopamine agonist has to be better than mirapex or requip.
i was in a phase3 trial by PHARMACIA for a new agonist called sumanirole. in the entire county where seattle resides they FOUND 3 VOLUNTEERS. The 1st part you got sumanirole, placebo or requip. that progressed to the open labell trial where everyone got to dose up to an effective dose of sumanirole. my pd was very mild but the sum. worked for me with no side affects, in the 1st part i assumed i got requip because of the side affects. what happened? the trial was cancelled. no explanation. PHARMACIA had been bought out though.
blame the drug companies all you want.
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I also blame us for not getting our butts into clinical trials. However, there is some sort of obsession in having dopa naive PWP in trials- pharmas only want the mildest of PD manifestation in their trials. They clearly avoid mid-stage disease and advanced disease PWP- why do you think that is?
Further, why don't our PD orgs begin a newly diagnosed patient education campaign to recruit newbies for clinical research?
There are many more potential better treatments than dopa stimulation. One vastly undertargeted area is
Acetylcholine antagonists and
allosteric modulators. The latter by Addex has huge potential as it controls dyskinesias. If I am not mistaken these might still be tested against agonists because the purpose is to compare efficacy not simply to improve agonists already on the market. Does anyone know if treatments targeting other receptor points are tested differently? Or do they all have to be in the same treatment family?
Laura