Clinical Drug Trials

The controversial clinical drug trials on 26 cancer patients at the Regional Cancer Centre in Thiruvananthapuram, allegedly under a contract with the Johns Hopkins University of the US, could be the tip of the proverbial iceberg, with 'biomedical joint ventures' becoming a buzzword for many leading institutions in the country. Greater public vigilance on biomedical experiments, especially in human beings, is needed to ensure that such trials strictly follow the norms set by the Indian Council of Medical Research and the Helsinki Declaration.