Feature interview: Rethinking medications

Breakthrough drugs are changing medicine, offering new hope in pill form. But the system meant to protect patients is under strain. The U.S. develops over 40% of new medications, and the FDA plays a central role in ensuring their safety. Harvard pharmacology professor Dr. Jerry Avorn says industry pressure has quietly weakened FDA standards, allowing risky or barely effective drugs to slip through. In his new book he reveals how this happened and shares practical advice for patients trying to make decisions about what we are willing to swallow. The book is called Rethinking Medications: Truth, Power, and the Drugs You Take.