These simplistic comments are a sad reflection of the failure of the Independent to get to grips with how animal research works. Whilst it is understandable that news pieces are short, the Independent is the only quality broadsheet that has repeatedly failed to give a more in-depth analysis. Contrast, for example, with the more sophisticated approach from the Guardian Comment is Free blog.

For all we know, some years in the future the outcomes of these news stories could be very different. If we do ever gain a successful vaccine against HIV, it could be that animal research plays an important role in its development. And it is not impossible that the results of the gene therapy trials for blindness turn out to be less spectacular than first thought—it would not be the first time.

We already know that some animal studies give results which translate reasonably well in to medical advances for people. Inevitably, in other cases, significant differences between the animals and humans, or problems in experimental design, or insufficient animal research, mean the results are less helpful. The Independent could do more to inform readers about the nature and intricacies of medical research. An occasional science column along these lines would be welcome.