“Personalized medicine (PM) has been described as ‘the right drug, for
the right patient, at the right time, at the right dose.’ National
health systems and private payers would like to add ‘at the right price,
as well.”
This according to Angelo DePalma, a
writer/consultant whose opinions appear in an article posted last week
in Eye for Pharma.
An individualized treatment based on each patient’s unique
physical/biological needs, PM is contrary to the model most
pharmaceutical developers have been using for years. But it is taking
hold and could be a boon to an industry which has been watching “big
pharma’s one-size-fits-all approach to drug development,” unravel for
some time.
Its future looks bright, according to DePalma, because it reallocates
healthcare resources more equitably and in the direction of patient
benefit. “At best,” says DePalma, “the industry would recoup lost
revenues through better patient compliance and higher prices, at least
in some markets.” Still, some experts say wide availability of
personalized medicine is 10-20 years off.
PM’s development is also spurring innovation in some large pharma
companies such as GlaxoSmithKline and Elan. Drugs are being repurposed
and rediscovered during testing to provide greater efficacy as well as
an opportunity to “uncrowd the marketplace and provide greater value as
well.”
In one case, “the personalization of cancer therapy could spare patients
from unnecessary treatments and side effects, while streamlining the
drug decision-tree and lowering costs for payers.” That is promising
for all.
Pairing drugs with tests—similar to diabetics testing their blood sugar
levels to adjust medication--will create niche opportunities for
entrepreneurs. One source predicts that easily “future therapeutics and
diagnostics will be aligned more closely than they are today.”
Perhaps the “one-size-fits-all” model is on its way out. Perhaps not.
At the very least, PMs will help this industry flesh out niche markets
and open up avenues of income that profit the pharma community and its
customers—YOU and ME.
It’s even harder to predict how packaging, which strives to be as
automated as possible, will evolve to address the many challenges posed
by personalized medicine.
