NIH researcher accused of misconduct

A senior researcher at the National Institutes of Health engaged in "serious misconduct" by entering into dozens of unauthorized private arrangements with drug companies and failing to report annually the outside income, totaling more than $100,000, a confidential internal review by the agency has found.

Officials at the NIH concluded late last year that the actions of Dr. Thomas J. Walsh, who has helped lead major clinical trials involving cancer patients, might result in dismissal from federal government service. No disciplinary action has been taken.

The previously unreported findings shed light on the depth of conflict-of-interest problems that have persisted at the NIH - the government's pre-eminent agency for medical research on humans. The NIH's handling of disciplinary decisions related to Walsh and other senior scientists is expected to be a focus of a congressional hearing scheduled for Tuesday.

Courtesy of the Los Angeles Times.

Steve - this is not the first and will definitely not be the last you'll hear of this conduct at the FDA.