Challenges and opportunities for the biomedical research community.

Abstract

The biomedical research community of the new millennium has at its disposal the resources and knowledge to bring about major changes in human health. Technological advances on a scale never before seen mean that we can consider a level of medical investigation and intervention unimaginable only 20 years ago. But with this power comes a tremendous responsibility to think carefully about how those resources should best be used. For reasons of economy, biomedical research is likely to remain focussed on the needs of rich countries. This need not, however, mean that poorer countries cannot in the future receive a greater benefit from the current community of biomedical researchers. And given the nature of disease and its disrespect for national boundaries, a more global approach to biomedical research should be attractive to rich and poor countries alike. Achieving this change, no matter how modest in scale, will require a concerted effort at all levels within the biomedical research community. Indeed, the community is at a stage when it must pay closer attention to the sensitivities and concerns of its patient population. Only then will the tremendous potential of biomedical research be embraced and supported by our societies.