Plavix, which is being taken by more than 3 million patients, passed all required animal tests and was deemed safe for humans. Now it's causing bleeding, anemia, and kidney failure in some users. As a physician, I am dismayed by this news, but not surprised.
Health hazards resulting from the use of animals in research are commonplace.
Only last fall, the antibiotic Raxar, also safety-tested on animals, was recalled after several patients died of heart failure. Other fluoroquinolone antibiotics, such as Trovan and Omniflox, were also recalled or reissued with warnings in 1999 after causing unpredicted toxic reactions in humans. Animal tests missed them completely. The series attempted to credit animal experimentation with progress in numerous fields. In fact, the use of animals in medical research has slowed medical progress and endangered human health.