Secrecy still shrouds most research on drugs

When the drug industry came under fire last summer for failing to disclose poor results from studies of antidepressants, major drugmakers promised to provide more information about their research on new medicines. But nearly a year later, crucial facts about many clinical trials remain hidden, scientists independent of the companies say.

Within the drug industry, companies are sharply divided about how much information to reveal, both about new studies and completed studies for drugs already being sold. The split is unusual in the industry, where companies generally take similar stands on regulatory issues.

Eli Lilly and some other companies have posted hundreds of trial results on the Web and pledged to disclose all results for all drugs they sell. But other drugmakers, including Merck and Pfizer, release less information and are reluctant to add more, citing competitive pressures.

As a result, patients lack critical information about important drugs, academic researchers say, and the companies can hide negative trial results by refusing to publish studies, or by highlighting the most favorable data from studies they do publish.

"There are a lot of public statements from drug companies saying that they support the registration of clinical trials or the dissemination of trial results, but the devil is in the details," said Dr. Deborah Zarin, director of clinicaltrials.gov, a Web site financed by the National Institutes of Health that tracks many studies.

Journal editors and academic scientists have pressed big drug makers to release more information for years.