The Marseille University Hospital Institute (IHU) has been conducting irregular clinical trials on tuberculosis treatments for several years under the direction of controversial professor Didier Raoult, reported on Friday.
Mediapart website. “Since 2017”, the IHU of Marseille “has been carrying out a wild experiment against tuberculosis, causing in several patients, including a minor, serious complications”, explains the site, which quotes several employees of the Institute on condition of anonymity. .
This experiment was “initiated by its director, Didier Raoult, and his deputy, Michel Drancourt”, specifies Mediapart. According to the site, which is also based on email exchanges and hospitalization reports, teams from the IHU tested a combination of four drugs whose joint effectiveness had never been evaluated.
“Not eligible”
These trials were carried out despite the refusal of the French Medicines Authority, the ANSM, which must give its approval to research involving human beings, in particular clinical trials of drugs. “Several patients, including a 17-year-old minor, had serious medical complications caused by this treatment,” explains Mediapart.
Asked by AFP, the IHU of Marseille did not respond immediately. The ANSM, without mentioning these trials in particular, recognized that several studies had been carried out in an “inadmissible” manner by the body and that “adequate follow-up” had been initiated by the Agency, without further clarification. . Mediapart information is in fact added to of the revelations published during the summer by the ExpressAccording to which many studies carried out at the IHU have for years broken the rules governing experiments involving human beings.