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SPOTLIGHT: Drug ads challenge reputation of inventor

February 7, 2008 — 7:59am ET
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cardiologist
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More than 25 years ago, the brilliant Dr. Robert Jarvik invented the artificial heart which made his reputation and fortune. For most of that time, he's been out of the public eye. Now, however, he's appearing in widely-seen television ads for Pfizer's cholesterol drug Lipitor, the world's single best-selling drug. His participation in the ad has stirred up controversy, including questions over the ethics of his appearance, given that he's not currently licensed to practice medicine nor is he a cardiologist. Aside from questions over Dr. Jarvik's conduct, his presence in the Lipitor campaign has added fuel to the ongoing debate over the appropriateness of direct-to-consumer pharma ads. Article

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By Anonymous | Posted 4:18pm | December 4, 2008

I get really upset when I see all the advertising about Lipitor. Our doctor put my husband on 20 mg. of Lipitor.He started acting crazy and made no sense finally had to put him in hospital in November 2006. The doctor on call at hospital said I might as well put him in a nursing home as his brain was fried all the blood vessels were flat in his brain. I took him out of hospital and after 6 days of watching the pattern of when he would get worse, i stopped the lipitor and he started getting better and had lived a fairly normal life until about a year ago and his vascular dememtia started getting worse he now has good days and bad days but mostly bad ones but I could not believe what the Lipitor did to him.

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