Neglected Disease Research and Development: How Much Are We Really Spending?
M. Moran,Javier Guzman,A. L. Ropars,Alina McDonald,Nicole Jameson,B. Omune,Sam Ryan,Lindsey Wu +7 more
TLDR
Mary Moran and colleagues survey global investment into research and development of new pharmaceutical products to prevent, manage, or cure diseases of the developing world.Abstract:
The need for new pharmaceutical tools to prevent and treat neglected diseases is widely accepted [1]. The creation of a vaccine for HIV/AIDS, more effective diagnostics for tuberculosis (TB), and better treatments for leishmaniasis and sleeping sickness would greatly improve health in the developing world in line with the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. However, funders wishing to invest in this vitally important area currently face an information gap.
There is little consensus on what constitutes a neglected disease or what new products are required [2]. Health research funding figures have been published by the Council on Health Research for Development and the Global Forum for Health Research [3,4], but these do not disaggregate product-related research and development (R&D) or neglected disease investments.
Specific R&D investment data are available for some neglected diseases—including annual surveys of HIV/AIDS and TB funding since 2000 and 2005, respectively [5,6], and a one-off survey of malaria R&D funding published in 2005 [7]—but these cannot readily be compared since each survey uses different methodologies and covers different diseases, products, donors, and countries. For most neglected diseases, there is simply no information.
In order to address these information deficits, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commissioned the George Institute for International Health to conduct five sequential annual surveys of global investment into R&D of new pharmaceutical products to prevent, manage, or cure diseases of the developing world. This article summarises key data from the first G-FINDER report (http://www.thegeorgeinstitute.org/prpppubs).read more
Citations
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A research agenda for helminth diseases of humans: the problem of helminthiases.
Sara Lustigman,Roger K. Prichard,Andrea Gazzinelli,Warwick N. Grant,Boakye A. Boatin,Boakye A. Boatin,James S. McCarthy,María-Gloria Basáñez +7 more
TL;DR: The forces driving the persistence of helminthiases as a public health problem despite the many control initiatives that have been put in place are provided; the main obstacles that impede progress are identified; and recent advances, opportunities, and challenges for the understanding of the biology, epidemiology, and control of these infections are discussed.
References
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Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases
Peter J. Hotez,David H. Molyneux,Alan Fenwick,Jacob Kumaresan,Sonia Ehrlich Sachs,Jeffrey D. Sachs,Lorenzo Savioli +6 more
TL;DR: In addition to malaria, tuberculosis, and human immunodeficiency virus infection, several other infectious diseases are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality as discussed by the authors, in particular 13 tropical diseases that cause disabilities such as blindness and heart failure.
Book
Macroeconomics and health : investing in health for economic development : report of the Commission on Macroeconomics and Health
TL;DR: The work of the World Health Organization's Commission on Macroeconomics and Health (CMH) as mentioned in this paper has been widely recognized as an important initiative to promote economic development and poverty reduction.