Sustaining Medical Research: Consensus Is Just The Beginning

Throughout my 35-year career, I have joyfully observed the dramatic growth of medical research and biotechnology. I've had the good fortune, over time, to witness this evolution as a participant in each of the medical-research enterprise's three sponsoring environments: government, academia, and industry. More than anything this diverse experience has instilled in me a powerful belief that any improvement in the health and well-being of people, any progress toward humankind's fundamental desire to live longer, healthier lives, depends on the contributions of medical research-- whether basic or applied, whether centered in the laboratory or clinic, whether nurtured by government, academia, or industry. This experience also has shaped my perspective that science has only begun to realize its vast potential to prevent, diagnose, treat, and cure disease. Today, we are on the brink of uncovering the basic mechanisms responsible for such diseases as cancer, Alzheimer's, and diabetes. We're tracking down human genes at a rate of more than one a day. In the past year, we've located the genes for Huntington's and Lou Gehrig's diseases, a major form of ataxia, and common forms of colon and breast cancer. And the extraordinary promise of biotechnology may yet revolutionize health care by unlocking the deepest molecular secrets of human disease. Yet, at a time when all of us involved in this dynamic enterprise should be confidently and optimistically preparing for our most productive period ever, I am decidedly anxious. I am concerned that the current debate about reforming the health-care delivery system is paying insufficient attention to the central importance of medical research in improving the quality of health care. And I am alarmed that some of the reforms proposed will affect adversely the medical-research enterprise precisely when it has the most to offer the public. My concerns are shared by members of the medical community throughout the United States. Recently I had the honor of serving as chairman of a forum sponsored by the medical- research advocacy organization Research!America--an event attended by individuals representing more than 100 organizations of the medical-research community. Despite the remarkable diversity of the organizations represented, attendees concurred that medical research and health-care reform are not only totally compatible but also absolutely interdependent, and that this message must be delivered loudly and clearly to the American public and its policymakers. In the weeks following the forum, input from the full range of these groups was incorporated into a consensus statement, "Medical Research: Progress and Promise for the Patient" [see page 12]. The statement emphasizes that research has been largely ignored as the nation grapples with formidable economic, social, and political issues raised by the debate over reforming the health-care system. The statement--signed by an unprecedented breadth of sponsors from academia, industry, and voluntary health agencies--offers policymakers nine recommendations to promote an environment conducive to medical research. None of us, acting alone, can convert these recommendations into action; but everyone can and should do something about them. We can communicate with public officials about the recommendations. We can remind the Clinton administration and Congress that the best way to improve the quality of care and reduce costs is to encourage more medical research. We can talk to our families, friends, colleagues, and patients about medical research and what it offers the public. We can go still further in our efforts. We can take the statement to our local newspapers and TV stations, distribute it in our local medical communities, give speeches to civic groups, write letters to editors--even request editorial board meetings to make sure the message gets around. The actions we choose to take must reflect our individual beliefs, but we are each obligated to take a role in shaping the future of medical research. The outcome of health-care reform will affect everyone--from the bench scientist to the patient. All scientists must join in communicating this message. As the consensus statement makes clear, the research community can ill afford to stay silent while issues vital to saving lives--and vital to our life's work--are debated in the halls of government. Leon Rosenberg is president of Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical Research Institute, Princeton, N.J., and a member of Research!America's board of directors. For more information on the consensus statement, contact Research!America at (703) 739-2577 or, via E-mail, at resamer@cap.gwu.edu

Sustaining Medical Research: Consensus Is Just The Beginning

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