Hyderabad: Scientists are attempting to reduce the time taken for the discovery of a new cancer drug from six years to one year by creating a consortium of open and sharable platforms. Accelerating Therapeutics for Opportunities in Medicine (ATOM) is an innovation in the field of drug discovery which helps reduce the time between identification of a drug molecule to its clinical application through the rapid integration of patient outcomes.
A similar consortium has been formed by the CSIR in India, to aid in the development of drugs to treat malaria and tuberculosis, but the results are yet to be evaluated.
A senior scientist, on condition of anonymity, says, “Drug discovery is not an easy process. It takes time to complete the techniques of evaluation. In a consortium, various formulations are sent, all of which need to evaluated and put through trials. The formulations work in some patients and do not work in others, and the drugs end up being put on hold until further testing. While the intention of reducing the time for development of new drugs is good, its actual implementation is tough.”
While cancer remains a major medical problem in the west, in India, drug-resistant forms of tuberculosis and malaria are leading to patient deaths. New drugs to fight these resistant forms are the need of the hour. The Indian Council of Medical Research is focussed on tackling these two diseases at the earliest.
