"In my career as a doctor, I have faced a variety of challenges and questions, but none have put me and my patients in a dilemma like explaining the high price of targeted drugs. Today, I would like to share with you a conversation with a patient's family, which is not only about the cost, but also about the collision of hearts. ”
One evening, when the door to the clinic slowly opened, an anxious mother walked in with her little daughter in tow. The daughter was diagnosed with a rare disease that required targeted therapy. After explaining the treatment plan in detail, we discussed the cost of the treatment - the cost of tens of thousands of yuan a box of drugs made her face pale in an instant. ”
"'Why is it so expensive?' how can we ordinary people afford it?' her voice was full of helplessness and despair. ”
"In the face of such a question, I am not only explaining the price of a drug, but also exploring the boundary between medical treatment and human nature. I tried to explain the R&D costs, market positioning, and policy environment behind targeted drugs in the simplest language, trying to make her understand the complex reasons behind this. But I also know that for her, these explanations do not ease her burden. ”
"This is not uncommon. Every time I face the doubts and helplessness of patients and their families, I feel a great responsibility. Yes, targeted drugs have given patients new hope, but their high price has also become an insurmountable threshold for many families. ”
Background of targeted drug development
First, let's figure out what targeted drugs are. To put it simply, targeted drugs are like smart bombs with precise navigation systems, which can directly hit the "target" of the disease, destroying diseased cells to the greatest extent while minimizing damage to normal cells. This approach has shown unprecedented effectiveness and potential in the treatment of complex diseases such as cancer.
However, this "intelligence" does not happen overnight. The development of targeted drugs is a long-term process that is both expensive and full of uncertainties. From the initial basic research, to the discovery of a promising molecule, the development of "drug candidates", to the verification of its safety and efficacy through clinical trials at various stages, each step requires a huge investment. It is estimated that the average cost of bringing a new drug from the lab to the market is in the billions of dollars, and the process can take ten years or more.
A source of high costs
The high cost of targeted drug development mainly comes from the following aspects:
Basic research: The study of disease mechanisms and potential drug targets in the laboratory is a long and costly process that often does not yield immediate results.
Clinical trials: To ensure the safety and efficacy of a drug, clinical trials must go through several stages, each of which requires a significant amount of time and resources. The success rate is low and the risk is high.
Regulatory approval: Even if a drug passes all clinical trials, it must be approved by regulatory agencies in various countries, a complex and time-consuming process.
Intellectual property protection: R&D developers need to apply for patents to protect their inventions and prevent other companies from using their R&D results without compensation, which is also an expensive and complex process.
Every step is fraught with uncertainty, and many "drug candidates" fail at some stage, so all the investments so far have been wasted. Therefore, when a new drug is finally approved for marketing, its price often needs to reflect all the investment in the R&D process and the risk taken to fund future innovations.
Why is it hard to reduce prices?
Before we explore why targeted drugs are so difficult to reduce, let's take a brief look at them. Targeted drugs, with their strong targeting and low side effects, are playing an increasingly important role in the treatment of certain diseases, especially cancer. However, the price of a box of drugs can easily cost tens of thousands of yuan, which makes many patients and their families feel burdened. So why are these life-saving drugs so expensive, and so hard to get them down?
Maintain the economic sustainability of developing new drugs
First of all, we have to understand that the cost of developing a new drug is astronomical. From the laboratory to the market, the R&D cycle of a drug can take up to more than ten years, involving a huge amount of capital investment. This includes, but is not limited to, preliminary research, clinical trials, registration applications, and other stages. During this period, every step of the way was full of uncertainties, and many drugs did not even come out in the end. Therefore, for those drugs that are successfully marketed, pharmaceutical companies need to recoup their previous investment through high prices and raise funds for future R&D activities.
Differences in price strategies in global markets
The price of targeted drugs is not uniform across the globe. Market pricing strategies, medical insurance systems, and government drug procurement policies in different countries will all affect the final selling price of drugs. In some countries, strong health care systems and government bargaining power can be effective in driving down drug prices. In other regions, however, the lack of such a mechanism keeps drug prices high. Pharmaceutical companies must consider the complexities of the global market when pricing to ensure that they can remain profitable in different market environments.
The impact of the regulatory and policy environment
Drug pricing is not a simple economic activity, it is also subject to a strict legal and policy environment. In many countries, drug prices must be approved by the relevant regulatory authorities. When considering drug pricing, these agencies need to ensure that essential drugs are affordable to the public, and that the pharmaceutical industry is healthy enough to facilitate the development of new drugs. This balance is extremely delicate and sometimes makes it difficult to significantly reduce drug prices.