Opinion: Irony of pharmas' saint and sinner status

'Trying to save thousands of lives' read a recent Times headline on the trial of a new lung cancer vaccine, the results of which were good enough - in the words of the Times sub-editors - to bring 'fresh hope of a breakthrough'. The company involved in the trials alongside Biomira, and whose work was described in positively glowing terms, is Merck & Co. That's right - the same company currently the subject of a massive class-action suit following the voluntary withdrawal of its arthritis pain-relief drug Vioxx.