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Wilson DeCamp wrote: > I am Wilson DeCamp, and I live in Leesburg, VA. I was diagnosed with PD in > 2004 at age 68. At the present time, my symptoms are relatively mild - > unilateral tremor - and pretty well controlled by Sinemet 3X daily. I pay > attention to my diet - lots of veggies - and take Coenzyme Q10 and vitamin C, even > though neither has been shown to help. > > As a note of my personal background, I am a Ph.D. chemist, and recently > retired from 25 years with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Although I > never worked on drugs for PD, I consider myself reasonably well informed about a > wide variety of issues about pharmaceuticals - especially how they are > studied and brought to the market. > > Now, having seen a few weeks of postings, I would like to make a few > requests of subscribers: > > 1. When mentioning drugs, please remember that drugs are frequently marketed > in different countries under different names. It's very important that we > know where you are located - at least the country. Moreover, a drug sold in > the US may not be approved in Canada or the UK, and vice versa. > > 2. There is always a nonproprietary name for a drug. It will usually be > marked that way on the label, or your pharmacist can help you. If you refer to > your drug by both the trade mark (e.g., Sinemet) and the nonproprietary name > (carbidopa-levodopa), it will help all of us understand better how to help > you. Also, if you know the nonproprietary name, you pharmacist may be able to > tell you if there is a less expensive generic equivalent that you can discuss > with your physician. > > 3. PLEASE, when you are passing along information you have found on the > Internet or at the library, STATE YOUR SOURCE. I my years of professional work, > I have had many experiences where people have asked me about a new cure for > their condition, but could only say that they "heard it from a friend". That > doesn't help to get more information. And remember that there are a lot of > ideas that haven't been proven in clinical studies. Circulating information > about unproven cures may raise your hopes unreasonably. But with a source, > you may be able to find out about who is investigating the drug, and maybe even > be able to get accepted into a clinical trial. > > Wilson DeCamp > > > Welcome Wilson: I am interested in your prospective on the following. Here in the US our business friendly president has granted the drug companies something called "fast track" status on the development and testing of new drugs. This allows new drugs to come to market with far less testing than in the past, and insuring even greater profits for the drug companies. We have seen several recalls of these fast tracked drugs only after they have injured or killed many in the general population. How can the potential consumer asses the safety issues and make informed decision. My feeling is that before a new drug can be marketed, the producers must first prove it is better than any thing currently available. Ned ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn