A Marriage of Large and Small: R & D for Healthcare Products
The most critical factor for success in the pharmaceutical industry is the discovery of novel drugs that treat major illnesses for which there had been, up to then, only inadequate kinds of treatment. Until a decade or so ago, most drugs were discovered through the in-house research of major pharmaceutical companies. But now these major companies are increasingly relying on small firms and academia for drug discovery, while concentrating on their core competences of drug development and marketing. A similar pattern is emerging in other parts of the healthcare industry. This article discusses the synergy between small and large firms in healthcare and suggests that this pattern may become a general one for all innovative industries.
Awakening the dragon's breath: biostatistics, competency and competition in the pharmaceutical industry
Innovations in chemistry and biology have generated multiple products and built significant revenue streams in the pharmaceutical industry. However, the complex and multi-disciplinary process of drug discovery and drug development makes it difficult to identify specific core competencies within a company. There is a need to better identify and manage sources of innovation that lead to new markets as ever-increasing investments in R&D have recently been accompanied by mediocre success in new product introduction. Additionally, outsourcing of clinical research and even early-stage discovery research continues to increase, creating a need to better define core competencies for strategic management decisions in pharmaceutical innovation In this context, we investigated the possible role that biostatistics -a key competence-could play in innovation in the drug development process. A sampling of case interviews from biostatisticians and executives in the pharma industry indicate that biostatisticians do contribute to innovation in the drug development process. Data gathered from contract research companies in the pharma industry suggests that outsourcing practices in the pharmaceutical industry increasingly include the outsourcing of biostatistics capabilities. We conclude that pharmaceutical companies should consider directing their management and outsourcing practices to retain and gain novel innovation through biostatistics.
New insights into juvenile parotitis
Aim: We enquired about the possibility of a familial trend in juvenile parotitis and evaluated the role of SPINK1 mutations in juvenile parotitis.