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AZ opens investigation into "Group of 7's" allegations of misconduct

Pharma Compliance Alert, April 18, 2007

Enter the words "Group of 7" and AstraZeneca into a search engine and the search will yield a host of blog entries. According to Brandweek, it's because these anonymous whistleblowers within the company have been e-mailing bloggers with allegations of improper sales tactics of the drug Arimidex.

After firing regional sales manager Michael Zubillaga April 6, AstraZeneca has opened an internal investigation into allegations that he had broken compliance rules while marketing the drug, reports Brandweek. Zubillaga had published an internal newsletter in which he called cancer doctors' offices "big buckets of money." The newsletter was later leaked to bloggers across the Web.

Although Zubillaga was fired, another comment in the newsletter may suggest that AstraZeneca had encouraged its reps to promote Arimidex directly against Novartis' Femara, although the two drugs have not been compared in clinical trials, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. According to the Inquirer, Zubillaga said that "we should have changed our strategy with our core messages earlier in regards to selling against letrozole."

AstraZeneca already operates under a corporate integrity agreement. According to the Inquirer, the company said in a statement that it takes claims of misconduct very seriously and has initiated investigations in relation to these specific claims.

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