Three million people worldwide are taking the new, heavily advertised [3] anti-cholesterol drugs Zetia and Vytorin, despite a lack of clinical evidence that they reduce cardiovascular disease or heart attacks, or help patients live longer. Vytorin and Zetia brought in $5.2 billion last year for Merck [4] and Schering-Plough [5], placing them among the best-selling drugs in the world. The Food and Drug Administration [6] approves many drugs based on whether they perform a specific action, like lowering cholesterol, without requiring long-term trials on whether they extend life or lower disease risks. Other FDA-approved drugs have been found to be ineffective or even dangerous. A possible link between Vytorin and cancer cannot be proved or ruled out after three studies, reports AP [7]. In 1999, the FDA approved the diabetes drug Avandia [8], because it lowered blood sugar; it was later found to increase heart attacks. But pharmaceutical companies oppose changing the current system. Ken Johnson, senior vice president of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America [9], says the FDA's approach enables patients "to access life-saving and life-enhancing remedies more quickly."