Judge Lets Gene Patent Lawsuit Move Forward

from the free-speech dept

A few months back, we noted that (finally!) someone was challenging the ridiculous and dangerous practice of patenting genes. The company being sued, Myriad Genetics, tried to have the lawsuit dismissed, claiming that the parties (the ACLU and some cancer patients) have no standing, but the judge was not convinced and is allowing the case to move forward, noting that there is a legitimate First Amendment issue to consider here. While just a preliminary step, this is definitely a step in the right direction.

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ACLU, Cancer Patients Sue Over Patenting Of Genes

from the big-news dept

For years, we've been among those who have questioned how the hell anyone (let alone the US Patent Office) can justify the concept of patenting genes. Yet, the Patent Office has continued to issue such patents, even as they have been shown to cause significant problems in diagnosing and treating certain illnesses. Finally, however, it appears that the concept of patenting genes is about to get tested in court. The ACLU has organized a group of cancer patients who have had treatments and medical analysis limited due to gene patents held by the company Myriad Genetics, and brought the issue to court. This is a big deal... and while the case and the resulting appeals will certainly take many years, this is going to be a case well worth watching.

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Latest Cell Phone-Cancer News: Your Eyes Are Safe

from the today-you're-fine dept

The debate about the cancer-causing effects of cell phones has been rumbling on for years and years, with contradicting studies coming out every so often. The real answer to the question of whether phones give people cancer, at this point, seems to be "nobody really knows yet", so any news one way or the other should be taken with a grain of salt (or two). In any case, the latest study to emerge says mobile phones don't cause eye cancer. Of course, this research contradicts the conclusion of an earlier, smaller study conducted by the same German researchers. So even though they're calling phones safe -- for your eyes, anyway -- the contradiction seems par for the course.

Carlo Longino is an expert at the Insight Community. To get insight and analysis from Carlo Longino and other experts on challenges your company faces, click here.

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No Targeted Ads For AIDS & Cancer Patients; But Drug Addicts & Dead People Are Fair Game

from the you-gotta-have-some-standards dept

Last month, we discussed how behavioral targeting of advertising risked seriously creeping people out, if it reached that "uncanny valley" of being a little too targeted, but not yet useful. It seems that behavioral targeted advertising firms are trying to deal with this by working together to come up with a set of standards covering what topics are taboo when it comes to targeted advertising. Cancer and AIDS patients, rejoice. Advertisers have decided not to target you. However, if you're old, addicted to drugs, religious, a convicted felon or dead, you're fair game. Dead? Well, the ad group says it meant the "death" category to be for targeting ads at relatives making funeral plans ("Death in the family? Get a casket for 20% off!"). How thoughtful of those advertising groups.

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Brain Surgeon Announces That Mobile Phones Cause Cancer... But Without Any New Research

from the well-that's-convincing dept

Every so often, somewhere, a research report comes out claiming that mobile phones cause cancer only to be followed a few months later by the latest research report claiming that mobile phones don't cause cancer. It goes back and forth and back and forth. So, we take it with a grain of salt every time some new announcement comes out one way or the other, and that's doubly true with the latest report, as a brain surgeon has declared that mobile phones are "more dangerous than smoking." Of course, there's just one problem: the guy hasn't done any new research. He merely read some of the old research that claims mobile phones cause cancer and is repeating the claims found in them.

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VeriChip Kept Quiet On Cancer Link... Yet Were Pretty Vocal On Fake FDA Approvals

from the well,-look-at-that dept

The Associated Press has a story that got plenty of attention this weekend, pointing out that a series of studies which found that VeriChip's RFID products induced malignant tumors in animals. This information was not made public as the company continued to hype the devices for implant into humans. The article notes that the devices were approved by the FDA... but leaves out a rather revealing bit of history. VeriChip and its parent company Applied Digital have done an amazing job generating publicity for the company, but often in very questionable ways. It might help to go through some of the history.

Back in 2002, prior to getting FDA approval, there was the too good to be true story of an entire family that just couldn't wait to get themselves chipped. The whole thing sounded sketchy from the beginning, and many suspected that the entire thing was merely created by VeriChip to get publicity. Soon afterwards, VeriChip announced that the FDA had said that implantable RFID chips were not regulated medical devices, and therefore could be used for chipping humans. Note that the announcement came from VeriChip. That's because the FDA did not say what VeriChip claimed it said. VeriChip had asked the FDA to declare the chips unregulated devices, and the FDA simply requested more information. VeriChip, in turn, took that request for more info and claimed that the devices were unregulated, leading to a rather unhappy FDA.

A few months later, the FDA finally gave conditional support for the device, saying that VeriChip could be used, as long as it was not advertised as a "medical device." VeriChip, of course, once again put out a press barrage claiming that it had FDA approval. And, not surprisingly, it kept advertising the chips as medical devices, leading the FDA to warn the company to knock it off. Then, the company went south of the border, and started focusing on convincing people in Mexico to get chipped for the safety of the children. See? Down in Mexico, you don't have to worry about the pesky American FDA. Two years later, we were a bit surprised that the FDA finally did approve the device for medical purposes -- but would you really want a company like that sticking stuff in your body?

Oh yeah, if that wasn't enough, the company had borrowed a bunch of money from IBM, and when IBM tried to collect, Applied Digital sued. Yes, they sued the company who gave them money when they were unable to pay back the loan. This latest article on the cancer link plays up the fact that former FDA head Tommy Thompson later joined the board of VeriChip, but leaves out his own reluctance to have a VeriChip RFID installed in his own body. Anyone else feel safe having this company stick RFID chips under your skin?

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