BLOGSCAN - Trial Results Via Press Release

See posts by Gary Schwitzer on the Schwitzer Health News Blog, and by Merrill Goozner on the GoozNews Blog on a new low in disclosing results of randomized controlled trials. It seems that Dendreon, the maker of the Provenge vaccine intended to treat prostate cancer, put out a press release that said the vaccine prolongs survival, but was completely lacking in data. Even preliminary results of the trial have not yet been released, much less has anything subject to peer review appeared. Nonetheless, the usually reliable New York Times called the trial "decisive." PR has trumped clinical science.