GlaxoSmithKline defends diabetes drug Avandia

Major pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline has made a strong defence of diabetes drug Avandia by issuing a detailed 30-page rebuttal to criticism levied by a US committee. The drugmaker claimed that a senate finance committee report was neither accurate, balanced or complete. The company also rejected allegations that it had covered up safety data, and said that the Senate reported included glaring omissions.
The Food and Drug Administration yesterday called for patients succeeding with Avandia to keep taking the diabetes drug, ahead of an advisory panel in July. Glaxo made it clear that they had studied the efficiency of the drug and how safe it was, and been transparent in communicating this data to medical professionals, regulators and governments.
Glaxo reportedly commented: “The safety of Avandia should be judged in light of all available scientific data with emphasis on long-term prospective studies.”