Date
10 June 2021
Small companies bear large burden of developing superbug treatments – report
Kristen Hallam for S&P Global Market Intelligence writes about the newest report from the Access to Medicine Foundation's Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark.
Hallam delves into the Foundation's latest research, which looks at the small drug-makers that are responsible for 75% of the world's late-stage R&D antimicrobial projects. Despite their crucial role in the world of medicine, these small companies are often under-funded and risk bankruptcy, leaving promising medicines unable to reach patients who need them.
Fatema Rafiqi, Research Programme Manager for the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Benchmark, is quoted in the article. Fatima compares the response to the COVID-19 pandemic to the serious threat of a future AMR-fueled pandemic. Fatema explains, "the rally around COVID was so much different and we need to push for that kind of rally" for new antimicrobials.