FDA Issues Emergency Authorization on Game-Changing 5-Minute COVID-19 Test

[theLBC]

so can we get one of the experts to let me know why we have to let people die in clinical double-blind tests to show if this drug works or not?

don't we already know what happens when people don't get the drug?
can't we just give it to everyone with symptoms and see if the numbers change?
why do some poor folks have to get a placebo and die to prove it works when 10s of thousands have already died without it?

i mean besides decades of doing it this way.

[sbo80]

so can we get one of the experts to let me know why we have to let people die in clinical double-blind tests to show if this drug works or not?

what drug are you talking about? This entire thread is about a faster, easier test to see who is infected or not. No drugs involved or mentioned.

[as_rocketman]

so can we get one of the experts to let me know why we have to let people die in clinical double-blind tests to show if this drug works or not?

don't we already know what happens when people don't get the drug?
can't we just give it to everyone with symptoms and see if the numbers change?
why do some poor folks have to get a placebo and die to prove it works when 10s of thousands have already died without it?

i mean besides decades of doing it this way.

No. If you've ever filled a prescription, you'll probably have noticed it has more detailed information than just "Eat Me" written on the bottle. The only quantity known at the moment is the so-called lead compound, and that from anecdotal evidence and laboratory studies in vitro.

There are important questions of dosing, delivery methods, interactions, metabolism, persistence and toxicity. There are questions about when it should be prescribed (a course of treatment) according to different patient histories and preconditions. There are also going to be important side effects. None of this can be determined without careful study.

While it may seem heartless to leave some individuals in the placebo group, if the therapy doesn't work out, they may in fact be the lucky ones.