Dr. Aseem Malhotra

But I agree that I think there is a small benefit.

But the question then is you also look at the side effects issue.

And the independent studies have never been able to get hold of the raw data as well on statins.

The totality of evidence around statins, the raw data has never been independently evaluated for side effects.

So we still don't know the true side effect profile.

They hold it.

And then you think the regulators are going to be able to ask for it and look for it.

They rarely do that.

Well, what they often give the FDA, Mark, is curated information from tens of thousands of pages of clinical study reports on patients in the trial.

So the FDA normally doesn't go and then reanalyze it.

They just trust what the drug industry, the summary results.

Yeah.

And then the other issue is, of course, the financial conflicts of interest.

65% of the funding of the FDA in the U.S.

comes from Big Pharma.

86% of the funding in the U.K.

of the MHRA comes from Big Pharma.

They don't want to bite the hand that feeds them.

So there's a huge conflict.

I think it's a combination of factors.