Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
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Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#2How do people needing (and willing to risk) treatment hear about repurposing studies?
Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#3How do people needing (and willing to risk) treatment hear about repurposing studies?
I think in the same way they participate in other clinical trials.
Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#4Such studies are great but there is no regulatory pathway to extend the use of existing drugs for new indications of use without the consent of the manufacturer (or becoming a manufacturer yourself).
This means such studies can give more clarity on which off-label use is beneficial but it can't be an officially allowed usage.
Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#5Such studies are great but there is no regulatory pathway to extend the use of existing drugs for new indications of use without the consent of the manufacturer (or becoming a manufacturer yourself). This means such studies can give more clarity on which off-label use is beneficial but it can't be an officially allowed usage.
That seems wild. Do you have a citation to back that up? And in what country/countries?
Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#6Such studies are great but there is no regulatory pathway to extend the use of existing drugs for new indications of use without the consent of the manufacturer (or becoming a manufacturer yourself). This means such studies can give more clarity on which off-label use is beneficial but it can't be an officially allowed usage.
This isn't completely true at least in the UK. It is simply that the manufacturer is no longer responsible legally. The GMC allow prescibing of unlicensed meds. However the change needs to be made to the pathway. So many issues in the NHS has been due to pathway problems.
Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#7How do people needing (and willing to risk) treatment hear about repurposing studies?
Big medical systems will post their clinical trails quarterly or so. If you have a big medical system near you you can sign up for emails. I imagine universities would have a mailing list too, if they regularly did clinical trials.
You can also search here: https://clinicaltrials.gov/
I was a clinical trial participant once and it was a positive experience for me.
Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#8I have been a supporter of Cures Within Reach, a nonprofit that focuses on repurposing drugs, especially for rare diseases. https://www.cureswithinreach.org
They have funded some important repurposed-drug studies for Huntingtons Disease, which runs in my family. For a disease like this, it's never going to make sense for major pharmaceutical companies to invest the effort to develop entirely new drugs, but by repurposing existing drugs, it gives people living with rare diseases a chance to ease symptoms.
Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#9the thing is while something is better than nothing, new drug development is critical
there is absolutely no cure for certain types of long-covid and me-cfs right now
no repurposing any drug is going to cure it, they've tried everything after six years
it will take a decade to have anything even in the pipeline and won't emerge from the USA because all medical and science research investment by the government has been destroyed by Russell Vought and Heritage Foundation
JAK-STAT inhibitors will be a big treatment, not a cure, but they cost thousands per month in the USA because generics aren't allowed
Re: Hospitals and universities repurposing drugs at lower cost
#10fascinating! I'm sure there's quite a bit that can be learned through appropriate research - pathways to solve problems that haven't been thought of before