Chapitre 4. Éthique de la recherche et pays en développement

Abstract

Developing countries are a breeding ground for research, especially for infectious diseases and HIV. On one hand, due to the prevalence of these diseases in this part of the world, and on the other, due to its needs in terms of research, disease prevention and heath care. The actions taken in the fight against HIV infection over the past years, considering that the urgent state of the health care situation has been a sensitive issue for ethical deviation evident in the following examples: Nonoxynol 9 trial (1996-1999) in Cameroon; Tenofovir trial (2003-2005) in Cameroon; Trials of fusion inhibitors in Latin America. No sanctions were imposed due to these deviations, and there was no possibility of recourse. What can these poor states do faced with health care emergencies, the extreme vulnerability of these populations and the big powerful pharmaceutical companies whose turnover or even profits are higher than the GDP of these countries? It is of the utmost importance that an international court of appeal be established to handle litigation regarding research related issues and the fair sharing of the profits resulting from research. The protection of vulnerable populations and the strict respect of ethical rules can only be implemented to the fullest if sanctions are applied to abusers.

Are students kidding with health research ethics? The case of HIV/AIDS research in Cameroon

“…The literature on bioethics in Cameroon has focused primarily on philosophical discussions and opinions [3-9] and the few empirical studies that exist have centered on capacity building of RECs and members of RECs [10-12], while some have discussed ethics and Cameroon journals [13]. Worldwide, studies pertaining to the documentation of ethics approval and informed consent have been dominated by reviews of published journal articles [14-16] and similar studies had been described in Cameroon which reveal that authors of scientific journal articles of research carried out in Cameroon significantly failed to document research ethics approval and informed consent in their publications [17,18].…”