How to Tell When A Drug Company Fibs About Clinical Trial Results
By Adam Feuerstein,
The Street
| 07. 03. 2012
Osiris Therapeutics
"disappeared" important data when the company announced results Monday
from a mid-stage study of its stem cell therapy Prochymal in heart
attack patients.
Naturally, Osiris didn't come out and tell investors that it was
issuing a misleading press release on the Prochymal heart attack study.
Instead, the company claimed the study was a success. That's not true.
Figuring out Osiris' deception wasn't that difficult if you know how to
parse the language of clinical trial results and look at independent
sources of information for the truth.
Ride along with me as I pick apart Osiris' statements regarding the Prochymal heart attack study.
Interpreting clinical trial results with a skeptical eye is a crucial
tool for all biotech investors, so apply these skills universally
whenever a drug or biotech company tries to convince you that its drug
works. Hopefully, you'll find most companies are telling the truth, but
sadly and too often, bullish pronouncements about boffo clinical trial
data are just spin jobs ginned up to plaster over problems and bad data.
Here's what Osiris issued Monday:
Osiris...
Related Articles
A Review of Exposed by Becky McClain
“Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.”
— John Lewis
Becky McClain became famous when she successfully sued Pfizer, one of the very largest pharmaceutical and biotech companies. She...
By Katherine Long, Ben Foldy, and Lingling Wei, The Wall Street Journal | 12.13.2025
Inside a closed Los Angeles courtroom, something wasn’t right.
Clerks working for family court Judge Amy Pellman were reviewing routine surrogacy petitions when they spotted an unusual pattern: the same name, again and again.
A Chinese billionaire was seeking parental...
By Sarah Kliff, The New York Times | 12.10.2025
Micah Nerio had known since his early 30s that he wanted to be a father, even if he did not have a partner. He spent a decade saving up to pursue surrogacy, an expensive process where he would create embryos...
By Carter Sherman, The Guardian | 12.08.2025
A huge defense policy bill, revealed by US lawmakers on Sunday, does not include a provision that would have provided broad healthcare coverage for in vitro fertilization (IVF) for active-duty members of the military, despite Donald Trump’s pledge...