[.ca] Human Trials: Risking Reputation And Riches In The Quest ... (ISBN 0738201820)

From Amazon.com:
Human Trials tells the life story of an unusually dedicated contemporary scientist who strove to revolutionize his field with his innovative ideas, and whose story is far from over. Susan Quinn, biographer of Marie Curie and Karen Horney, focuses here on Dr. Howard Weiner and his belief in oral tolerance--"the long-held observation of systemic hyporesponsiveness to an antigen fed prior to immunization." He believes that compounds based on oral tolerance can be used to successfully treat autoimmune diseases, particularly multiple sclerosis. His attempts to prove this belief and bring such a compound to market are told as representative of what all scientists, investors, and patients involved in drug discovery must endure. This approach yields interesting observations regarding clinical trials in general. Most notable among them is that the trials are designed to treat large populations in the future rather than the individuals enrolled in them today. Human Trials is a heartbreaking book. All the characters--the researchers in Dr. Weiner's laboratory, the executives in his fledgling biotech company, and especially the patients he treats--are sympathetic, and there are no happy endings for any of them. But Dr. Weiner still believes in his idea and is still toiling to prove it. Let's hope that one day we will read about how he fulfilled his life's ambition and cured MS. --Diana M. Gitig

Facinating look into clinical trials:
This book grabbed me from the start since I also have one of those incurable, untreatable autoimmune diseases that rarely threaten your life, but certainly ruin it. Scleroderma patients had a recent, similar roller-coaster ride with what was thought to be a promising therapy. I could easily relate to everyone involved - patients, treating doctors, researchers, and investors. Ms Quinn took very complex material about MS and the research surrounding it and made it understandable, while telling an exciting and emotionally engaging story. Though it doesn't help me to cope day-to-day with my disease, it does make me understand the processes and people involved in the search for a treatment.

Blends science with medical insights:
Susan Quinn's Human Trails blends science with medical insights as it draws unusual and important connections between scientists, investors in scientific and medical research, and how drug trials are financed and conducted. Hers is written from lead investigator diaries and closed-door meetings with investors, offering more than an outside look at the facts.

A Thrilling Journey into the War Against Disease:
I knew Susan Quinn's HUMAN TRIALS would be an engaging, informative inquiry into the intricate process of bringing a new drug therapy to market. What I didn't expect was that the book would read like the best of thrillers -- it takes the reader on the suspenseful and sometimes heart-wrenching journey into the very heart of the war against disease. HUMAN TRIALS is ultimately about the people who populate the closed society that chronic, degenerative illness creates (in this case, MS and rheumatoid arthritis): the patients and their families who suffer and hope, and the doctors, scientists, and investors who, from motives that mix intellectual egotism, financial gain, and selfless dedication, bring their best weapons of mind and spirit to the battle. Quinn does an admirable job describing and demystifying the strategy involved in one novel approach to conquering, or at least containing, MS and RA; the reader learns in compelling detail just what it takes to develop an untested theory into a viable, marketable protocol. However, HUMAN TRIALS goes beyond scientific process to tell a story of risk and courage on both sides of the line. On this particular journey, failure is simply a subset of perseverance, knowledge arrives in unexpected ways, and victory is really a matter of the heart more than the body.