News© Institutional Communication, 05/16/2006
“The cost of bringing a drug to market is over a billion dollars”
- This was the affirmation of Per Lindberg, scientific advisor to AstraZéneca and one of the fathers of omeprazol, speaking at the University of Navarra
Per Lindberg, senior scientific advisor to AstraZéneca. Photo: Manuel Castells
“The cost of bringing a product from its conceptualization to the market is over a billion dollars today,” stated Per Lindberg, senior scientific advisor to the multinational pharmaceutical firm AstraZéneca. This expert, one of the creators of omeprazol, participated in the University Master’s in Drug Development of the University of Navarra.
According to the researcher, around 20% of the investment for producing a drug corresponds to the preclinical phase—the phase prior to the synthesis of the product—and 80% to the clinical phase, “since thousands of patients are required, along with healthy volunteers who can demonstrate the utility of the treatment, which becomes extremely costly.”
Dr. Lindberg stated that “the pharmaceutical industry depends completely on research and innovation, and upon the subsequent registering of patents. If we keep in mind that copying the products is relatively simple, the large pharmaceutical firms become dependent upon the protection of their discoveries.” Therefore, the development of technology in a country is linked to patents. “In fact, since Spain approved its patent law in 1992, it has taken a huge step forward in the field of science,” he noted.
On the other hand, he stated his disagreement with the current techniques of experimentation: “We work too much in vitro and very little with live animals. If we maintain an ethical use of living beings, in vivo methods can optimize our testing processes and accelerate the obtaining of relevant results.”
6 billion dollars a year
As one of the discoverers of omeprazol in the 1980’s, he noted that it was the world’s top-selling drug for treating stomach problems for six years, “in addition to being one of the most profitable, earning up to 6 billion dollars a year.” Omeprazol and esomeprazol, one of its derivatives, are used for treating stomach ulcers and esophageal reflux, “ailments which are becoming ever more common as a result of the modern lifestyle,” he pointed out.
Finally, the senior advisor recommended that the students of the University Master’s Program in Drug Development of the University of Navarra “possess a general vision of their area, including knowledge of biology, medicine, pharmacology and patent rights.”
Currently, Per Lindberg belongs to the Swedish Chemical Society, the Swedish Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences and to the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). Over the course of his career, he has obtained 30 patents and written more than 50 articles on Analytical, Organic and Medical Chemistry.
Master in Drug Development of the University of Navarra
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