The innovative medicines initiative and brain research: Intelligent investments worth making
05.06.13
“Investment in brain research is an intelligent investment, especially in times of scarce resources, as it can help avoid even higher costs to society in the future” – these words came from Máire Geoghegan–Quinn, Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, at last week’s Healthy Brain: Healthy Europe conference.The culminating event of the European Month of the Brain, the conference served as a reminder that we all need to keep on pushing for support of brain research and funding – even after Brain Month is over.
Over the next 50 years, the number of Europeans over the age of 65 will increase by 75%, while incidences of dementia will more than double. Such stats have serious consequences for quality of life for affected individuals and healthcare systems. According to WHO, in 2010, the total global societal costs of dementia was estimated to be $604 billion – this was already three years ago and such numbers are going to increase. If we don’t act to address such areas of unmet need, the pressure on health services around the world will be tremendous.
Economic implications aside, patients are the ultimate motivation for such research. This was highlighted in a recent comment from Peter Andersen, chairman of EFPIA’s Research Directors Group: “If we don’t make sure that progress and basic research are translated into something that benefits the patient, from better diagnostics to better treatment and prevention, we have failed.” I agree. Part of what makes research so exciting is the thought of discovery, demystifying the unknown, the new. As a researcher, it’s easy to get lost in technical details in this quest. Sometimes, researchers need to be reminded of the life outside the laboratory, and remember that their work ultimately is all about improving patient wellbeing.
For the rest of us, it’s essential to support the valuable work these researchers are doing. This means raising awareness by talking frankly about the challenges ahead. It also means providing the needed funding for research – for instance, through continued support of Horizon2020. I have discussed the dangerous implications that cutting funding of Horizon2020 could have for the Innovative Medicines Initiative in a previous blog. With the third trialogue on Horizon2020 fast approaching on June 17, I want to emphasise its value – in this case, specifically regarding brain research.
Projects under the IMI umbrella relating to brain research have already shown their value. The NEWMEDS project has created the largest known database of studies on schizophrenia, and the project’s work has indicated that copy number variation (when the number of copies of a particular gene varies between different people) impacts not only schizophrenia, but also intellectual disability and autism. Another IMI project, Pharma-Cog, is developing new tools to test candidate drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer’s. The strategic research agenda for IMI2 continues to tackle the topic of brain-related diseases, with key deliverables in the area of neurodegenerative diseases including the reclassification of disease by molecular means, qualification of biomarkers to support diagnosis and support patient stratification, and development of innovative trial designs.
These projects exemplify the collaborative nature of IMI, and indicate the promise held by public-private partnerships: When it comes to the tough problems that remain, it’s essential to pool knowledge and resources. Only by working together can we conquer some of the tough challenges still ahead, including areas of unmet need in brain-related diseases. A timely adoption of the Horizon2020 package can help ensure a secure future for projects like these. Investing in initiatives to continue support of such research isn’t just an intelligent investment, as far as I’m concerned. It’s a must.
