Premature births may be reduced with hormone gel

Does the story adequately discuss the costs of the intervention?

Not Satisfactory

The story discusses costs but, because of the way it interjects the drug Makena, the story confuses the costs issue. It says in the lead, “A simple, safe, relatively inexpensive hormone treatment might help some high-risk pregnant women carry their babies longer, a new study suggests,” but then it says, “Even better, the newest one would appear unlikely to cost $690 a dose — unless drug makers are slow learners.” This raises the idea that the maker of the drug being studied has been considering selling the drug for $690 a dose. The story further confuses matters by saying, “One new drug, also progesterone-based, is marketed for women who have already had a spontaneous preterm birth. That drug, Makena, was the subject of considerable controversy recently after its manufacturer boosted the price from $20 per dose to $1,500 per dose before finally lowering it to $690. … If the progesterone gel is as effective as the study suggests, women would likely find the price tolerable. But probably not at $690 a dose.”

AP was much better on this, reporting: “Although the company didn’t address price, vaginal progesterone already is sold to treat different conditions, for roughly $20 for a day’s dose.”

Does the story adequately explain/quantify the harms of the intervention?

Not Satisfactory

No discussion of harms. The study itself found that, “There were no differences in the incidence of treatment-related adverse events between the groups.” This is important context because pregnancy interventions can have consequences for both the mother and the child.

Does the story use independent sources and identify conflicts of interest?

Not Satisfactory

The story quoted no independent experts and actually no experts ar all. The story also undercut the significance of the research by saying, “And, of course, the trial was funded by the maker of the progesterone gel, to be marketed as Prochieve.” That’s worth noting, but the AP story states, “The study was a collaboration between NIH and Prochieve maker Columbia Laboratories Inc. of Livingston, N.J., which plans to seek Food and Drug Administration approval for the drug for women with short cervix.”

Does the story compare the new approach with existing alternatives?

Not Satisfactory

The story did an adequate job explaining what the study examined but did not compare the progesterone treatments very effectively to existing methods of stalling birth.

In addition, as stated in “availability” above, this story might leave readers confused as to which drug could end up being a good therapy for certain women. The Times blog piece raises the issue of an expensive, injectable drug called Makena, which has made headlines recently because of its high price. The AP story said clearly, “This treatment is not related to an injection called Makena, a synthetic hormone that is controversial because of its high price tag. That drug is aimed at women who’ve already had one preemie and now are pregnant again.”

Does the story establish the availability of the treatment/test/product/procedure?

Not Satisfactory

First, the story was never clear about the availability of the hormone treatment – only a hint that it is “to be marketed as Prochieve.”  What does that mean about availability now?

Second, unlike the AP story, this story might leave readers confused as to which drug could end up being a good therapy for certain women. The Times blog piece raises the issue of an expensive, injectable drug called Makena, which has made headlines recently because of its high price. The AP story said clearly, “This treatment is not related to an injection called Makena, a synthetic hormone that is controversial because of its high price tag. That drug is aimed at women who’ve already had one preemie and now are pregnant again.”