Big Pharma Paid $24 Million to 1 Percent of US Oncologists, Many in High-Profile Positions: Study

Authors say findings identify risk of 'real conflict of interest'

Dr. Christian Hinrichs, an investigator at the National Cancer Institute in immunotherapy for HPV+ cancers, shows a patient, a survivor of metastatic cancer, the difference between his CT scan showing cancerous tumors (R) and a clean scan after treatment (L), at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Md., on Feb. 8, 2018. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

One percent of U.S. cancer doctors, many with leadership roles in hospitals, academia, national health institutes, and guideline-making, received over $24 million in payments from cancer pharmaceutical companies in 2018, according to a new study by Queen’s University in Canada.

The study found that 139 oncologists—representing 1 percent of all American cancer doctors—were given over $100,000 in general payments, with a median payment of around $154,000, and a total of $24.2 million.