Drug firms under fire over secrecy on 1,096 trials

MORE THAN 1,000 drug trials have taken place in Ireland over the last seven years, with little or no public knowledge.

Although the Irish Medicines Board (IMB) authorises all trials, it does not provide any public information on drugs being tested, the number of patients involved in trials, the drug firms concerned or the results of such studies.

IMB figures, released to the Irish Examiner, reveal 1,096 trials have been given the go-ahead since the board began licensing drug trials in 1998. That’s an average of 156 annually.