Many drug trials are vetted by companies with ties to the drugmakers, raising concerns about conflicts of interest and patient safety. When Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk wanted to test whether the main ingredient in Ozempic, its wildly popular weight-loss and diabetes drug, could also treat liver disease, it first needed approval from an ethics panel to ensure the safety of trial volunteers in the United States. Such panels, called institutional review boards, have the power to reject drug trials or order modifications if participants face unreasonable risks. They are supposed to be independent watchdogs — counterweights to Big Pharma and overzealous researchers. Why are we publishing this? Ethics in drug research is an important topic in Switzerland given the large number of research-based pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the country. Many countries including the US and Switzerland require the use of an ethics committee or board to ensure clinical trials meet regulatory ...
