Scientist Defends Vioxx Work ; Merck Researcher Found No Sign of Heart Troubles

The Record, Bergen County, NJ › October 12, 2005

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Summary

ATLANTIC CITY - A Merck & Co. scientist testified at the second trial over the painkiller Vioxx Tuesday that it was "really completely outrageous" to suggest that she and her colleagues put profits ahead of patient safety in developing the drug.

Alise Reicin said Merck extensively studied the drug before its launch in May 1999 and never believed it caused heart attacks. Reicin testified at the trial of a lawsuit brought by Frederick Humeston, who blames his 2001 heart attack on Vioxx. She rebutted an expert witness for Humeston who suggested that Merck placed a higher value on drug profits than on human life.

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Scientist Defends Vioxx Work ; Merck Researcher Found No Sign of Heart Troubles

"Nothing could be further from the truth," Reicin told jurors in Atlantic City, adding that she became a physician to help patients. "To say that I would pu...

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