MDNews - Central New York

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ONONDAGA COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++ +++ + + By Gerald N. Hoffman T HE QUESTION POSED above was addressed on July 13 dur- ing a news conference held on the Syracuse campus of Bristol-Myers Squibb. And the answer is clinical trials — which bring innovations in medical treatments, create science and manufacturing jobs, and stimulate business in our community. At the event, attendees were presented with a report titled "Research In Your Backyard: Developing Cures, Creating Jobs." The 63-page report summarizes the clinical trials in New York State and their economic benefits. Since 1999, more than 6,200 clinical trials, representing one-third of all clinical trials in the United States, have been conducted in New York State. As I sat and listened to the speakers at the conference, I could not help but think how important Big Pharma is throughout the country, despite continuous attempts by some observers to paint these industry leaders as villains. There is no debate that Americans are living longer because of advances in medical research, of which clinical trials are a vital component. In the past 13 years, biopharmaceutical research companies have sponsored or are spon- soring 3,255 clinical trials in New York State, testing potential new medicines for asthma, cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and mental illness. At the pres- ent time, there are clinical trials being held in the Syracuse area for all six of Drives New York's Economy? What Saves Lives and the aforementioned medical challenges. Steven Goodman, Ph.D., Vice President of Research at Upstate Medical University, highlighted the value and importance of clinical trials here and elsewhere. Medical research in New York State sup- ports more than 201,000 jobs. Employees in the field are paid $2.8 billion annually and account for $99 million in state taxes and more than $646 million in federal taxes. In one recent year, biopharmaceuti- cal research firms invested $2.1 billion in research and financed $50.9 billion in products and services. The report points out that "the U.S. system of new drug approvals is perhaps the most rigorous in the world. It takes 10-15 years, on average, for an experimental drug to travel from lab to U.S. patients. On average, it costs a company $1.2 billion, including the cost of failures, to get one new medicine from the laboratory to U.S. patients." Critics have claimed that the U.S. approval system is too lengthy and cumbersome, while consumer advocates are calling for more attention to be put on patient safety. Others complain about the cost of new drugs, which patients and their loved ones want to have in times of medical crisis. Having been in the health field for the past 32 years, as a patient and now as a senior citizen, I look back in wonder at the medical advances in my lifetime. As a child, for example, I was kept away from the state fair for fear of contracting polio. This was before development of the Salk vaccine. Cancer, that dreaded word often thought of as a death sentence, does not necessarily mean that anymore. I am proud and thankful to be a cancer survivor, and I cannot find it in my heart or my brain to join the ranks of those who beat up on Big Pharma. The July 13 news conference at Bristol- Myers Squibb was a step back in time for me. As youngsters living in the outer Eastwood area in the mid-1940s, my older brother and I had a newspaper route. Walking along Thompson Road, we noticed a strange smell in the air, which we learned was from the manufacturing of that new miracle drug, penicillin. At age 8, I began to experience swollen glands in the winter and would develop temperatures of 101-102 degrees when I ran and played games. Seemingly, every time a new drug came on the market, I would be put in the hospital and was administered the new medication. Penicillin was a miracle drug for many, but it did nothing to cure what was later diagnosed as a case of chronic mononucleosis, long before I even kissed one girl. By the time I graduated from college, I had outgrown it. Gerald N. (Jerry) Hoffman is Executive Vice President of the Onondaga County Medical Society and is co-author of two books, Medical Malpractice Insurance, A Legislator's View and The History of Local Medical Care, 1806-2006. ■ MDNEWS.COM ■ MD NEWS Central New York | 5

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