Can guinea pigs be a GOOD thing?
Image by Jay Reed, Flickr
Have you ever been referred to as a guinea pig? The newbie who is being forced to test the waters? Think about how you felt. Like you were being used? Like you didn’t matter? Probably so. The connotation of a guinea pig is pretty negative.
Recently, I heard the term "guinea pig" on a commercial for Boost, a popular mobile phone carrier. A girl in her mid to late-20s was strapped for cash and couldn't afford her outrageous cell phone bill. What did she do? Offered herself up as a "guinea pig" in a clinical trial. She was injected with medicines to see if they’d work to make the extra cash she needed to pay her bills. And by the end of the ad, the poor girl’s two eyes had melded into one. Funny, right?
Well, I didn't think so. Unfortunately, it was an insensitive approach to putting a comedic spin to cell phone bills. I think Boost should take a closer look at their creative strategies. Clinical trials, the testing of new medicines to ensure safety and efficacy, are bringing breakthroughs like cancer vaccines and drugs for Alzheimer's, depression and diabetes to patients in need all over the world. Without those trials, we'd be stuck using turn-of-the-century therapies and people would be suffering from diseases because there would not be any promising treatments.
Think about a loved one who is struggling with a disease. Are you hoping that a new research breakthrough will relieve them? Or, think about someone who's living a better life because of the medicine they're taking. What would it be like without that medicine? You get the idea. If it weren't for volunteers in clinical trials, that loved one may not be with you right now. And that may sound harsh, but we, as a general population, need to re-think our perception of clinical trials. It’s not about volunteering yourself to pay a cell phone bill. Without the "guinea pigs," a.k.a. gracious volunteers and patients hoping for a breakthrough, we wouldn't be where we are today. Maybe the term "guinea pig" could be redefined as a good thing. After all, it is a cute little furry animal.
Comments
Right on, Claire. It's amazing that marketing can trivialize something that plays such an important role in health care. Unfortunately, without volunteers, clinical trials can't do what everyone expects: prove the safety and efficacy of a drug. I just read that only 1% of the U.S. population is part of a clinical trial and less than 5 percent of cancer patients participate in oncology trials. Those who do volunteer are helping bring new medicines to all of us.
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