Republished with some modifications.
When I started reading this book I would never have guessed
that one of its main characters would be Martha Stewart. I thought
the book was about the biotech company Imclone (and it is).
I did not know
much about Imclone before this book. However, I do remember that when
I arrived in USA in 2004 to start my postdoctoral studies, one of the
main news on TV was about Martha Stewart going to prison for insider
trading. Who knew that she ended up in prison because of her
connection to Imclone's boss (both are of polish origin).
This book is more like a biography of
Imclone's co-founder Sam Waksal, a very charismatic person. It describes his personal
life with great details. The author portrayed Sam
Waksal as a habitual liar, someone who is hungry for money and luxurious living, who could easily attract
people and used to get what he wanted (of course, until 2003, when he
went to prison for insider trading and related charges).
Sam
Waksal had been running Imclone for almost 20 years. The fact that he
managed to keep the company alive for so long without having a single
product does indicate that he did has an extraordinary qualities. People
thought he was a great scientist with great social skills. In late
2001, Imclone made headline news in USA by revealing its $2 billion
deal with Bristol-Myers Squibb to develop and commercialize
cancer drug erbitux (EGF-R antagonist). It was the largest deal in
biotech world at that time. However, within next 2 years, almost all
of the Imclone's top executives were either in prison or no longer
with the company.
What happened? Imclone's story is a
classical example of corporate hype. After reading this book it
becomes clear how easy it is to manipulate media and investors. Imclone's story reminds us about the disconnect between making
science and making money.
But I also want to point out that science behind Imclone's drug Erbitux was ahead of its time and later discoveries in cancer field vindicated Imclone's management's position regarding some of Erbitux [failed] trials (for example need for patient stratification based on cancer genetic makeup). In fact, few years later after Imclone's debacle Erbitux was approved by FDA for use in cancer patients.
But I also want to point out that science behind Imclone's drug Erbitux was ahead of its time and later discoveries in cancer field vindicated Imclone's management's position regarding some of Erbitux [failed] trials (for example need for patient stratification based on cancer genetic makeup). In fact, few years later after Imclone's debacle Erbitux was approved by FDA for use in cancer patients.
posted by David
Usharauli
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