Medical innovations are often the consequence of decades of research.
Published on 12/12/2022
Dear Readers,
Innovation is the buzzword and lifeblood of our time. While the term has become so ubiquitous that its inflationary use has watered down its meaning quite substantially, it is obvious that without real innovation neither economic nor social progress is possible.
The ability to innovate and develop sustainable, value-adding products and services is vital in the continual quest to change the lives of people for the better, protect the environment and help create a more equitable and prosperous society.
Pursuing innovation – not just mere improvement – is, however, a risky endeavor. It requires cutting-edge knowledge, substantial financial means and, most importantly, a courageous mindset – even or especially in the face of failure.
President Ronald Reagan, addressing the US nation after the explosion of the Challenger in 1986, which killed all astronauts on board, put it thus: “The future doesn’t belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave. The crew was pulling us into the future, and we’ll continue to follow them.”
The riskier the goal, the higher the likelihood that something goes wrong. This is true not only for space travel, but also for any other industry, including the pharmaceutical sector, which can only progress by challenging the status quo and embrace setbacks as part of this challenging journey.
The past decade has seen numerous scientific breakthroughs, which followed this dialectic pattern of failure and success. They gave rise to new medical approaches that go beyond the traditional concepts of small-molecule and biotech therapies and provided the industry with access to arenas which were previously restricted to basic science or specialized clinics.
Major advances in RNA, cell, gene and radioligand technology, for example, have allowed Novartis to develop therapies for a variety of diseases which until recently have been considered incurable or extremely difficult to treat.
These breakthroughs were the consequence of decades-long research, which entailed numerous failures along the road – a fact that is often ignored in the moment of success. Gene therapy, for example, which has been around since the 1980s, became a sustainable technology less than a decade ago. The basis for RNA technology, which has been instrumental in overcoming the pandemic, has been in the making for more than 30 years.
Novartis has been at the forefront of scientific progress since its creation in 1996, testing out new avenues such as gene therapy and xenotransplantation from the start. Although these early attempts failed, we learned important lessons.
One of the realizations was that breakthrough technologies, even if they might seem attractive at first sight, are often not ready for prime time. So, taking smart risks is essential. While we had to learn this the hard way, it allowed us to leverage these experiences for other endeavors, including the next generation of gene therapies.
Going forward, our strategy of focusing on science-based innovation, in which we invest around 9 billion US dollars annually, remains intact as we will continue with our efforts to develop innovative therapies that can change the practice of medicine.
As this edition of live shows, which is the first of a three-part series about our leading technology platforms, we keep investing heavily in our research capabilities. One of the key features of the magazine is centering on our new radioligand research and development facility on our Campus in Basel, which went online this year.
Another big topic in this number is revolving around our activities in the chemical biology arena, which are helping us to develop novel classes of molecules. In a suite of three stories dedicated to this research space, we are also shedding light on how our scientists are leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as CRISPR, pluripotent stem cell techniques and cryo-EM imaging to deepen our understanding of human biology.
While we are aware that pursuing innovation is fraught with failure, we know that the pursuit of top-notch science offers the greatest reward in the long term. By taking smart risks and cultivating a courageous mindset, we will be able not only to change the practice of medicine but showcase how innovation is a key enabler of economic and societal improvement.
Novartis has the courage to move forward on this challenging, yet promising path, which is the only road toward progress. It is the road which Novartis and its predecessor companies have travelled for more than a century.
