{"id":271,"date":"2026-05-30T20:54:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-30T18:54:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/experimenthe-blog.com\/?p=271"},"modified":"2026-05-30T21:17:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-30T19:17:08","slug":"didier-raoult-and-the-hydroxychloroquine-saga-when-science-took-a-holiday-in-marseille","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/experimenthe-blog.com\/index.php\/2026\/05\/30\/didier-raoult-and-the-hydroxychloroquine-saga-when-science-took-a-holiday-in-marseille\/","title":{"rendered":"Didier Raoult and the Hydroxychloroquine Saga: When Science Took a Holiday in Marseille"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you live in Marseille, you know the IHU building: shiny glass, palm trees, Mediterranean sun. Looks like a high-tech temple of science. But during the COVID pandemic, it became something else: ground zero for a global hype train, led by Professor Didier Raoult – microbiologist, YouTube star, and man with the most famous beard in French science.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 1<\/strong>: Notre Raoult de la Garde. Drawing by Karen. <\/em><\/sup><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Paper That Launched a Thousand Headlines<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You remember march 2020? Corona. Panic everywhere. No vaccines yet. Everyone\u2019s desperate for a cure (while vigorously baking banana bread, obviously). But also, a big moment for many researchers that were pushed into spotlight, trying to explain and offer a scientifically founded solution for a never-before-seen crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enter Raoult\u2019s team of the IHU with a paper in the International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents<\/em>. Their claim? Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) – a malaria drug – plus azithromycin (an antibiotic) wipes out COVID-19 in a matter of days. Voil\u00e0, pandemic solved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study had only 42 patients (already a red flag), but only 36 made it into the final results. Why? Because 6 were excluded: some got too sick, one died, another left the hospital. In other words: if you tank, you vanish from the dataset. Voil\u00e0, problem solved again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Controls? Treated patients were at the IHU in Marseille. Controls were\u2026 in another hospital entirely. See the problem? Different place, different care, different everything. It was like comparing Paris Saint-Germain to your cousin\u2019s five-a-side team and calling it \u201ca fair trial.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the kicker: ethics approval for this study supposedly dated March 6 (Reminder: you are not allowed to do experimental research on human without ethic\u2019s approval). But in this case the study looks like it started even before<\/strong> then. Unless Raoult invented time travel, or simply someone was a little too eager with the recruitment?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the paper itself? Submitted on March 16, published only four days later on March 24 \u2013 that\u2019s like going to the moon and back in 5 minutes instead of 6 days \u2013 a never-before-seen timeline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Rockstar Moment<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some researchers, for example microbiologist Elisabeth Bik, grew quickly suspicious of the paper but none the less the world went wild. Trump tweeted it. Fox News sang its praises. Brazilian politicians ordered HCQ like it was champagne. Sanofi increased its production by 50%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a brief, glorious moment, Marseille was the Mekka of medicine. People pilgrimaged to the IHU, waiting 5 hours to be able to enter. Pharmacies couldn\u2019t keep chloroquine in stock. Patients begged doctors for prescriptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Figure 2:<\/strong> <\/sub>The virus transforms people into zombies, kinda. Drawing by Karen.<\/sub> <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

And Raoult? Having coffee with president Emmanuel Macron in Marseille, and getting a seat in the scientific council of the French government. Then his image started to crackle. He doubled down with his now-famous line: \u201cI don\u2019t believe in randomized clinical trials.\u201d<\/em> (Link Youtube) Rejecting basic scientific methodology is like a pilot saying, \u201cI don\u2019t believe in wings.\u201d<\/em> Cute philosophy, until the plane starts nosediving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ethics on Vacation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As more people poked around the IHU, the story got\u2026 messy. Not only for the infamous HCQ paper, but also past published papers and trials:<\/p>\n\n\n\n