Fibromyalgia: It becomes a ‘real’ disease when there’s a drug to sellFibromyalgia has always been one of those Cinderella diseases. Its symptoms
seem real enough to the sufferer, who complains of chronic and widespread
pains in the muscles, and fatigue.

Doctors – and the medical establishment in general – have taken a less than
sympathetic view, and have treated the fibromyalgia sufferer in the same
disdainful way they have ‘treated’ the ME patient.

In short, the patient is a nervous worrier, and whatever is wrong with him
or her is located almost entirely in the mind.

The experience is distressing and frustrating for the patient who knows full
well that he or she is suffering from a genuine problem. But how to change
the entrenched views of the medical establishment?

Step forward one resourceful drug company, part of an industry that has
never knowingly passed up on a marketing opportunity.

The American drug watchdog, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has just
approved the very first drug to treat fibromyalgia. Pfizer’s Lyrica
(pregabalin), which was originally licensed to treat neuropathy and
neuralgia, also “reduces pain and improves daily functions for some
patients” who suffer from fibromyalgia, says the agency.

And, hey presto, a condition that’s “all in the mind” suddenly becomes a
recognized, and treatable, condition.

Thank you, Pfizer.
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