The
editor of a British journal, Lancet Oncology, issued an "expression of concern" Friday, citing a December 2007 study it published from Dr. Anil Potti and others. The study described gene patterns that might help predict a breast cancer patient's response to chemotherapy.
The journal said two of Potti's co-authors had contacted them this week on behalf of 15 European scientists involved in the study with "grave concerns about the validity of their report."
Statisticians at the University of Texas' M.D. Anderson Cancer Center had questioned methods used in the study, the co-authors wrote. The co-authors' repeated attempts to reach Potti and other researchers at Duke had been ignored, they claimed.
"A large group of scientists" also wrote to National Cancer Institute Director Harold Varmus, expressing concern about the validity of methods involved, and asked that three ongoing clinical trials be suspended until an independent review can be done, the statement from the medical journal says.
Potti could not be reached via e-mail for comment, and a home telephone number could not be found. Duke officials did not reply to e-mails or phone calls requesting comment.
