Turning research into practicality is focus of Roswell Park workshop
About 100 research scientists and life science industry professionals gathered Tuesday in Roswell Park Cancer Institute to take another step in the quest to help researchers bring medical discoveries out of the academic realm and into real-world application.
The daylong “translational research workshop” brought academics and industry representatives together to tackle the difficulties and opportunities of commercializing medical research.
The first half of the event spotlighted academic researchers who shared their experiences navigating the leap from lab to market and the lessons learned along the way.
Karen A. Veverka, director of preclinical development at biopharmaceutical company GTx, told how her company is navigating the expensive, time-consuming challenges of bringing to market molecular hormone therapy in the treatment of prostate cancer. Bringing a drug to market costs about $1.3 billion and takes an average of 15 years, she said.
As part of a small company, Veverka stressed the importance of collaborating and taking advantage of existing knowledge and research. Working with companies of similar interest allows GTx and its collaborators to share the burden and prevent duplicating work.
Engaging the federal Food and Drug Administration early in the process is important, too, to foster communication and make sure that expectations are clear. Veverka also assured researchers that their academic careers did not have to end once they enter the commercial world.
“The move to industry—the transition between the research environment and a pharmaceutical company — is not as drastic as you think,” she said.
Roswell Park’s chief executive officer, Dr. Donald L. Trump, and deputy director, Candace S. Johnson, used their experiences in studying the effects of vitamin D on cancer to illustrate the challenges of applying research in a commercial framework.
“No matter what, it’s difficult. There are roadblocks,” Johnson said.
Some of those difficulties, she said, are spurred by the differences in the backgrounds of medical doctors and Ph. D. s, which can lead to challenges in communication, expectation and time commitment. Also taxing, she said, is the lack of funding, as well as figuring out the first step in commercialization before determining how to proceed.
The second half of the day was devoted to industry representatives who could lift the veil from the commercial perspective, with presentations on such topics as patents and technology transfer, along with a panel discussion involving executives.
Held in Roswell Park’s new Center for Genetics & Pharmacology, the workshop was sponsored by Roswell Park, Buffalo Niagara Enterprise, Dopkins & Co. certified public accountants and consultants, Hodgson Russ attorneys, Life Technologies and the New York State Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics & Life Sciences.
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