Dr Nicholas Jones and Elizabeth Swan, patent attorneys at European intellectual firm Withers & Rogers, explain why pharma companies may be missing out on opportunities to repurpose existing drugs.
Repurposing
When new drugs are invented, the full extent of their effects are not usually apparent, including potential benefits. With the necessity of securing patent protection early and the commercial imperative to bring their inventions to market as soon as possible, pharmaceutical companies may focus on listing the clinical benefits of a new drug, without giving much thought to any potential non-medical uses in fields such as cosmetics. For some, this could be a missed opportunity.
Repurposing existing drugs has become a popular activity for many pharmaceutical companies in recent years, largely due to the significant cost and time investment involved in developing new drugs and bringing them to market. Research compiled recently in the US by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development has estimated that it takes about 12 years to develop a new drug and bring it to market, at an average cost of some $12.6 billion. The ability to identify a new use for a drug that is already known to be safe and has achieved the necessary marketing and regulatory approvals, could be viewed as an ‘easy win’ as it requires less investment and could generate quicker returns.