Charles Piller: Fraud and Tragedy In the Quest to Cure Alzheimer's

Schedule

Mon Feb 10 2025 at 06:00 pm to 07:00 pm

UTC-08:00

Location

The Commonwealth Club | San Francisco, CA

Piller says he’s exposed a vast network of deceit and its players, all the way up to the FDA.
About this Event

Award-winning investigative journalist Charles Piller joins us in San Francisco for an in-depth look at what he says is a world of fraud, corruption, deceit, and greed that have set back important work on treating Alzheimer’s disease.

Nearly seven million Americans live with Alzheimer’s, a tragedy that is projected to grow into a $1 trillion crisis by 2050. While families suffer and promises of pharmaceutical breakthroughs keep coming up short, investigative journalist Piller says that we’ve quite likely been walking the wrong path to finding a cure all along—led astray by a cabal of self-interested researchers, government accomplices, and corporate greed.

Drawing on the work in his new book Doctored, Piller highlights a whistleblower—Vanderbilt professor Matthew Schrag—whose work exposed a massive scandal. Schrag alleged that a university lab led by a precocious young scientist and a Nobel Prize–rumored director delivered apparently falsified data at the heart of the leading hypothesis about the disease.

From there, based on years of investigative reporting, Piller says he’s exposed a vast network of deceit and its players, all the way up to the FDA. He points to evidence that hundreds of important Alzheimer’s research papers are based on false data. In the process, he says even against a flood of money and influence, a determined cadre of scientific renegades have fought back to challenge the field’s institutional powers in service to science and the tens of thousands of patients who have been drawn into trials to test dubious drugs.

SPEAKERS

Charles Piller, Investigative Journalist, Science; Author, Doctored: Fraud, Arrogance, and Tragedy in the Quest to Cure Alzheimer’s; X @cpiller

Moderator TBA

5:30 p.m. doors open & check-in
6–7 p.m. program
7 p.m. book signing
(all times Pacific Time)

Where is it happening?

The Commonwealth Club, 110 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, United States
Tickets

USD 27.33

The Commonwealth Club

Host or Publisher The Commonwealth Club

It's more fun with friends. Share with friends

Discover More Events in San Francisco

Seong Jin Cho at Davies Symphony Hall
Sun Feb 09 2025 at 07:30 pm Seong Jin Cho at Davies Symphony Hall

Davies Symphony Hall

Seong-Jin Cho in San Francisco
Sun Feb 09 2025 at 07:30 pm Seong-Jin Cho in San Francisco

Davies Symphony Hall

Circling: Relational Mindfulness and Authentic Relating
Mon Feb 10 2025 at 07:00 pm Circling: Relational Mindfulness and Authentic Relating

The Center SF

SPORTS WORKSHOPS
Stuart Murdoch
Mon Feb 10 2025 at 07:30 pm Stuart Murdoch

The Chapel

Stuart Murdoch at The Chapel
Mon Feb 10 2025 at 07:30 pm Stuart Murdoch at The Chapel

The Chapel

Civo Navigate North America 2025
Mon Feb 10 2025 at 08:00 pm Civo Navigate North America 2025

Convene

BUSINESS WORKSHOPS
Wunderhorse
Mon Feb 10 2025 at 08:00 pm Wunderhorse

The Independent

CONCERTS MUSIC
Wunderhorse at The Independent
Mon Feb 10 2025 at 08:00 pm Wunderhorse at The Independent

The Independent

Monroe Guest List (Free Entry Before 11pm)
Sat Apr 22 2017 at 10:00 pm Monroe Guest List (Free Entry Before 11pm)

Monroe

ART ENTERTAINMENT
Battle of the Decades : 60s 70s 80s 90s Dance Party
Fri Apr 28 2017 at 05:00 pm Battle of the Decades : 60s 70s 80s 90s Dance Party

Monroe

PARTIES ENTERTAINMENT
Scenes & Songs with Flash Mob Musical
Fri Sep 01 2017 at 08:00 pm Scenes & Songs with Flash Mob Musical

Endgames Improv Theater

LIVE-MUSIC COMEDY
Recology San Francisco Public Tour
Wed May 22 2019 at 09:30 am Recology San Francisco Public Tour

The John A. Legnitto Environmental Learning Center

ART PARTIES
Lakehouse Jazz
Fri Oct 04 2019 at 07:30 pm Lakehouse Jazz

Blue Heron Boathouse

MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
MINDSHOP\u2122 REPLAY| DESIGN THINKING IN 3 STEPS
Wed Mar 31 2021 at 07:00 pm MINDSHOP™ REPLAY| DESIGN THINKING IN 3 STEPS

PRE-RECORDED

ART HEALTH-WELLNESS
Mellow Sessions @Haight
Sat Jul 24 2021 at 07:30 pm Mellow Sessions @Haight

The Mellow Haight

MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
SF: Food + History + Art Tour
Fri Oct 01 2021 at 02:30 pm SF: Food + History + Art Tour

Southeast corner of 16th and Church Street, Mission District

ART PARTIES
The Center SF Open Mic
Fri Feb 04 2022 at 07:00 pm The Center SF Open Mic

The Center SF

ART OPEN-MIC
The Setup at The Palace Theater
Fri Mar 18 2022 at 09:30 pm The Setup at The Palace Theater

The Palace Theater (The Speakeasy SF)

COMEDY ENTERTAINMENT
Secret Improv Society
Fri Apr 08 2022 at 08:00 pm Secret Improv Society

Shelton Theater

COMEDY ENTERTAINMENT
Notorious SF: Scandal & Crime Tour
Sat Jun 04 2022 at 06:00 pm Notorious SF: Scandal & Crime Tour

Union Square

ART NONPROFIT

What's Happening Next in San Francisco?

Discover San Francisco Events